Jeopardy! Champions Reveal Secret Online Database That Helps Them Win
There is a database of Jeopardy clues and answers that has helped many champions prepare for their time on the game show.
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When it comes to being a champion on Jeopardy! the primary skill would of course be having intense and deep knowledge around a ton of different topics and categories. That’s first and foremost and is a prerequisite for not only making it to the show but also coming away a winner. But as we’ve seen over the years, there are other things folks can do to maintain a high-level performance on the game show. And one thing that a number of champions have utilized is a database of past Jeopardy! questions and clues. Those have helped inform a number of different folks about just how the game structures some of its categories and answers.
According to People, a number of past champions have said they’ve used the website J-Archive which is about as comprehensive a history of the show as you’ll ever find. The website is laid out much like the game in that folks can click on a Jeopardy! air date and look back at just about every clue and answer from the show. It goes all the way back to September 10, 1984, the first installment of the game show. And from there, just about every episode is in the database with users able to click through and see all of the clues and answers. Champions have referenced this website as a vital tool in getting prepped for the show, saying studying past episodes gives clear patterns in how the show structures its format.
In all, J-Archive has nearly 500,000 clues and answers from previous Jeopardy! Episodes, and allows visitors to either go to specific episodes to see how each board was laid out. Or they can search specific topics and keywords. It is this latter function that has helped contestants begin to see patterns with how certain questions are formed in different ways that will typically provide the same answer in the end. Contestants have said there will often be clues within the questions themselves that allow for answers even if the contestant isn’t knowledgeable on the exact topic.
Look, there is obviously big money involved with winning on Jeopardy! especially if you are able to maintain high levels of performance over multiple episodes. Heck, we are seeing that right now with Amy Schneider who is on an epic run. She has totaled more than $1 million in prizes over the last 30 games and a quick search on J-Archive through the latest episodes is just a sea of her name appearing over and over. Preparation is a key to this.
But in terms of all-time winnings and victories, there is still a ways to go until she reaches the true mountain top. The most consecutive wins in a row on Jeopardy! belongs to Ken Jennings with 74. He also holds the record for most regular-season winnings with a little north of $2.5 million dollars in prize money. And in terms of all-time winnings which include tournaments, that would be Brad Rutter who has amassed just about $5 million dollars during his time on the show. From this perspective, it would seem that Amy Schneider will be spending a little more time on J-Archive before it’s all said and done.
