LOS ANGELES — Thunder Bay-born Ray Lalonde made a big wager and got the right answer on Final Jeopardy.
But it wasn't enough to advance to the next round in Jeopardy's best-on-best Tournament of Champions.
The Hillcrest High School graduate now living in Toronto did very well during the Jeopardy and Double Jeopardy rounds of the popular quiz show that aired last night.
He and Celebrity Jeopardy champion Ike Barinholtz tied for the most correct answers at 17 apiece, but Lalonde had no incorrect responses while Barinholtz had three.
Still, both men trailed Melissa Klapper for the amount of money earned prior to Final Jeopardy.
While Klapper fell to third place after answering the final clue incorrectly, Barinholtz and Lalonde both had the right response.
But Barinholtz had wagered almost everything he had, and finished with $28,601 compared with Lalonde's total winnings of $21,800.
The former Thunder Bay resident left the tournament with $5,000 to add to the nearly $386,000 he won during a string of 13 Jeopardy victories in January 2023.
"My Jeopardy career was wonderful, and it's over," he said in an interview Tuesday.
Asked if he wishes he had done anything differently in his final competition, he said "Of course. You always second-guess yourself afterwards. I felt like I was just not getting in the buzzer . . . But I watched the game afterwards, and it didn't look like I was doing that badly. You know, it felt worse than it was."
Lalonde credited Barinholtz for playing a great game.
"He was very fast, and he knew his stuff."
Lalonde's twin brother, Ron, was in the audience for the taping of the show.
Noting that his brother has also applied to be a contestant on Jeopardy, he said "We'll see if something comes of that."
