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‘JEOPARDY!’ CONTESTANT AUSTIN ROGERS’ 12-GAME

WINNING STREAK COMES TO AN END

Rogers Will Return For The Tournament of Champions, Airing November 6-17

CULVER CITY, CALIF. (October 12, 2017) ­– New York City bartender Austin Rogers’ 12-game winning streak came to an end on today’s episode of JEOPARDY!, when Scarlett Sims, a stay-a-home mom from Oak Ridge, Tenn., emerged as the new champion. Rogers’ run netted him $411,000 in prize money and attracted legions of fans who made the quirky contestant a viral sensation.

“Austin was outside the box…completely different from what many viewers expect a JEOPARDY! contestant to be. He was fun to be with and slightly irreverent,” said JEOPARDY! host Alex Trebek.

Rogers finished his run in fifth place on the all-time regular-season (non-tournament) winnings list; his $411,000 total puts him behind only Ken Jennings, David Madden, Julia Collins, and Matt Jackson. He is now also tied for fifth place (with Season 33 contestant Seth Wilson) for most consecutive games won: only Jennings (74 wins), Collins (20 wins), Madden (19 wins), and Jackson (13 wins) have won more.

“I set myself a goal of two wins, and I exceeded that expectation,” Rogers said. “I mean, I always wanted validation that I’m smarter than everyone, and now, when in an argument, I can just say ‘SCOREBOARD!’ and point to an imaginary Jumbotron,” he continued jokingly.

Rogers, who graduated from Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., with a B.A. in History, says that his education encouraged a “curious nature.”

“If I don’t know the answer to something, I immediately look it up and don’t forget it,” he said. “I got a good learning regimen from college but the specific information utilized in answering correctly was mostly from my extracurricular reading, documentary-watching, and general nerdery.”

Aside from his clear mastery of the subject matter, Rogers attracted attention for his inventive hand gestures at the start of each day’s show.

“I realized there’s a ton of time to stand there and grin like an idiot as they announce the winnings, name, etc.,” he said. “So, I’m like, ‘I gotta kill this time somehow, because it’s awkward.’ 90 percent of those were completely improvised in a near-panic. I thought after like the third or fourth one ‘someone’s gonna CGI the things I’m doing.’ I hope if they do, they animate the balloon dog. His name is Trevor. He’s a half beagle half poodle. A Peagle. Boogle? Whatever.”

Rogers still hasn’t decided what he wants to do with his prize money, though he has a few ideas.

“I don’t really know [how I’ll spend the money] other than I want to make sure that I’m all within tax law before doing anything stupid or frivolous,” he said. “Once the money’s in hand, it would be really nice to just on a whim decide to go to an Arsenal match. Or, like, Estonia. I’ve also wondered if a Steinway piano is a good investment.”

Viewers won’t have to wait too long to see Rogers on the show again, as he will compete in the upcoming JEOPARDY! Tournament of Champions presented by Consumer Cellular. The two-week event begins Monday, November 6.

JEOPARDY!, America’s Favorite Quiz Show®, and its host, Alex Trebek, are in their 34^th season in syndication. With 23 million viewers each week, JEOPARDY! is the top-rated quiz show on television, and has won several awards and distinctions over the course of its 30+ years on the air, including the 2017 Emmy for Outstanding Game Show. The show holds a Guinness World Records® record for the most Emmy® Awards won by a TV game show (34 Emmys); it is also the recipient of a 2011 Peabody Award. JEOPARDY! is produced by Sony Pictures Television, a Sony Pictures Entertainment Company; it is distributed domestically by CBS Television Distribution and internationally by CBS Television International, both units of CBS Corp. For more information, please visit Jeopardy.com.

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