Going into Friday night’s episode of “Jeopardy!” Amy Schneider needed $22,600 to hit $1 million on the long-running game show.
It was clear after her answer and wager were revealed she was setting herself up to make history no matter what happened.
Going into the final round Schneider, who has now won 32 consecutive games in a row, wasn’t in any danger of losing since she was almost $30,000 ahead of the next contestant.
With $32,400 she could afford to lose $9,800 and still hit $1 million. And that’s what she wagered.
In the end though she got the answer correct giving her $42,200 for the evening. Her grand total is now $1,101,600.
“[...] The nerves really kicked in. I was getting close to that million, and it would be *so* disappointing to get this close and not make it,” she wrote on Twitter on how she felt leading up to her record-breaking win.
Schneider is a history-making contestant. She is the first transgender contestant to qualify for the tournament of champions, a yearly tournament featuring players who won the most games from the past season.
“It’s a strange thing to think that I have made history as the first trans person to qualify for the Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions,” she wrote in an editorial in Newsweek. “It was inspirational for me to see transgender contestants on the show before I became a contestant and I hope that I am now doing that same thing for all the other trans ‘Jeopardy!’ fans out there.”
Schneider has won more consecutive games than any other female and was already the highest-grossing female contestant on the show, which means she’s also the first female contestant to win more than $1 million.
That designation is sure to trigger some right-wing conservatives since Schneider identifies as a transgender woman. She’s already faced some backlash online for her history-making run on the game show.
In an article titled “Erasing Women: Trans ‘Jeopardy!’ Contestant Takes Crown for Highest-Earning Female Win Streak,” Brietbart writes, “The claim that Schneider holds the women’s record is rejected by advocates for women’s status and rights.”
Schneider though has brushed off the blowback on Twitter.
“I’d like to thank all the people who have taken the time, during this busy holiday season, to reach out and explain to me that, actually, I’m a man,” Schneider tweeted. “Every single one of you is the first person ever to make that very clever point, which had never once before crossed my mind.”
Larissa Kelly, the previous female record holder for most winnings, congratulated Schneider on her success.
"Well, it was fun to hold a ‘Jeopardy’ record for a few years ... but it's been even more fun to watch @Jeopardamy set new standards for excellence, on the show and off," Kelly tweeted. "Congratulations to Amy on becoming the woman with the highest overall earnings in the show's history!"
Julia Collins meanwhile held the record for consecutive games won with 20 in a row back in 2014.
Currently Schneider sits in fourth place for consecutive games won and fourth place for highest winnings in regular-season play.
Schneider needs to win five more games to crack the top three in most consecutive games won and about $500,000 to crack the top three in highest winnings in regular-season play.
Schneider gives regular game recaps on Twitter and offers up other behind the scene tidbits for fans of the show.
Schneider continues her ‘Jeopardy!’ journey tonight at 7:30 p.m. on ABC.
RELATED
Trans Woman Becomes Highest-Earning Woman in 'Jeopardy!' History
