When it comes to ending a Jeopardy! game with bags of money, nobody’s done it better than James Holzhauer. During the program aired on April 17, 2019, he amassed $131,127—landing him at the top of the list of highest single-game winnings. In fact, no other contestant made that list at all: Over the course of his 32-game streak in 2019, the professional sports gambler took every single spot in the top 10.
The streak was a solid 42 games short of earning him the top spot on the list of most consecutive games won, where Ken Jennings has sat since his 74-game streak in 2004. But at the time, 32 games was enough for second place. Since then, two more fierce Jeopardy! competitors have snuck in between Holzhauer and Jennings. In 2021, Matt Amodio clocked 38 straight wins before suffering a loss at the hands of Jonathan Fisher.
“ always been the face of Jeopardy! to me,” Amodio said when he surpassed Holzhauer. “So, when I think of Jeopardy! I always think of him, to feel me right behind is a surreal experience.”
But Amodio is no longer right behind Jennings. Earlier this year, Amy Schneider went on a 40-game run that catapulted her into the silver-medal spot—also earning her the distinction of being the first woman to win more than $1 million on the classic quiz show.
The latest addition to ‘most consecutive wins’ list is Mattea Roach, a 23-year-old tutor from Canada whose incredible 23-game streak came to an end in early May, which was enough to place her in the all-time top five.
See who made the top 10 below.
- Ken Jennings (2004) // 74
- Amy Schneider (2022) // 40
- Matt Amodio (2021) // 38
- James Holzhauer (2019) // 32
- Mattea Roach (2022) // 23
- Julia Collins (2014) // 20
- (Tie) Jason Zuffranieri (2019) // 19
- (Tie) David Madden (2005) // 19
- Ryan Long (2022) // 16
- Matt Jackson (2015) // 13
A version of this story ran earlier in 2022; it has been updated to indicate recent records.