Wheel of Fortune fans were screaming as a contestant after they made a crucial mistake that cost her the win. Their opponent went to the Bonus Round but lost out on taking home a car.
Jess Coleman, from Catonsville, Maryland, was that contestant. She makes fancy charcuterie boards and grazing tables for every event.
Coleman played against Cristy Elrod, from Bowling Green, Kentucky, and Aditya Jain, from New York, New York, on May 27. Elrod, a woman who taught herself to make cakes, solved the first toss-up. Coleman solved the second toss-up.
Jain, who learned how to play cards from his grandfather, obtained the Wild Card and solved the first puzzle — “Extra Large Pizza.” This gave him a total of $4,150.
With only two letters left to guess, Coleman solved the “Before & After” puzzle — “Uppercase Letter Carrier.” She then had $3,600.
During the prize puzzle, Coleman guessed most of the letters. When she only had seven spots left to guess, she landed on the Express Wedge. The mother of an 11-year-old said that she was going to pass on it, and the crowd groaned.
“No, it’s fine,” host Ryan Seacrest said. “No hard feelings. It’s good.”
The Express Wedge would give her $1,000 for every consonant and no money spent on vowels. However, if she guessed a letter wrong, it would result in a total bankrupt.
At the moment, the “Rhyme Time” puzzle looked like “THE RAIN IN S_AIN STA_S _AIN_ _ IN THE _ _AIN.” Coleman had $14,050 after guessing two more letters. She then landed on Bankrupt, moving the turn to Jain.
“My heart is literally breaking right now. I’m so sorry,” Seacrest said.
Fans reacted to her choice on Reddit. “Always hop on the Express. Ugh,” one fan said.
“Why Jess?” asked another.
“First of all, WHY not take the train, ma’am?! Secondly, that BANKRUPT was totally unnecessary,” a third added.
“Is there any legitimate reason not to ride the express pass??? I’ll never understand why people turn it down,” one asked.
“She had most of the puzzle solved already and said no to the Express??!!?? WTF !??” another said.
“Yet another person who didn’t ride The Express and lived to regret it. They prob would have solved the puzzle. Baffling to me,” one last fan said.
Jain then guessed a P and hopped on the Express Train. With only two letters left, he guessed “L,” which filled in the puzzle. It was revealed to be “The Rain in Spain Stays Mainly in the Plain.” He won trips to Spain and Portugal, giving him a total of $15,740.
Jain solved all three triple toss-ups, giving the game show contestant an additional $10,000. Elrod solved the final puzzle — “Throwing a Boomerang” — ending the game with $5,500.
Coleman went home with $3,600. Jain was the night’s winner with $25,740.
He chose “Living Things” for his Bonus Round category. Jain brought his parents with him.
“R,S,T,L,N, and E” were given to him by Wheel of Fortune. Jain chose “C,D,M,A, and F.”
“MA_N_L_AS” was what the puzzle looked like. As the clock counted down, he guessed “Manatees,” “Monkeys,” and “Mainplays.”
The puzzle was “Magnolias.” He did not win the Volkswagen Tiguan, which was in the envelope.
Wheel of Fortune, weekdays, check local listings, stream next day on Hulu and Peacock
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