After one of the most historic runs in Jeopardy! history, Amy Schneider could not repeat her success in the Jeopardy! Masters tournament. She was eliminated on the May 17 episode as she failed to amass enough points to be one of the four that advanced to the semifinals. One of the reasons for that was she often ran into the buzzsaw that is James Holzhauer.
Holzhauer has been absolutely dominating the competition, which is no small feat since all the contestants (Schneider, Matt Amodio, Sam Butrrey, Andrew He and Mattea Roach) are some of the best players Jeopardy! has ever seen. Still, Holzhauer won six out of the seven games he played (and just lost the seventh in a tight game with Amodio), often in blowout fashion that allowed him to not even answer Final Jeopardy questions seriously most of the time, often poking fun at host Ken Jennings.
His antics and dominance are all a part of the self-proclaimed "game show villain" title that Holzhauer has been using throughout the tournament's run. Schneider actually weighed in on this persona on social media following her exit from the competition, revealing some of her true thoughts on Holzhauer.
"James may play a villain on TV, but in real life he's a great guy," Schneider tweeted. She also made it clear this isn't just her being gracious, adding, "if I didn't actually like him, I just wouldn't say anything about him at all."
James may play a villain on tv, but in real life he’s a great guy, as enjoyable to be around as he is frustrating to play against. And I mean that; if I didn’t actually like him, I just wouldn’t say anything about him at all https://t.co/jVWG4330fFMay 18, 2023
This wasn't an out of the blue comment either, but an acknowledgement of a tweet that Holzhauer sent out following Schneider's elimination that read, "It was my honor to share the Masters stage with an inspiration, a phenomenal Jeopardy player and an even better human."
In her initial Jeopardy! run, Schneider won 40 consecutive games, which is the second most all time on the show, trailing only Jennings. She also won the 2022 Tournament of Champions and is currently fourth all time in career winnings on the show. She was also a historic figure, becoming the first transgender Super Champion on the game show.
Her run on Jeopardy! Masters unfortunately never came together, as she was not able to win any of her games, though she did finish second in five of them, more than any other player. However, based on how the points worked, it wasn't enough to secure her spot in the semifinals. Schneider commented on this in her last Final Jeopardy response, writing "why not two points for finishing second?" Had that been the case, she would have advanced to the semis, but alas.
Jeopardy! Masters semifinals begin on Monday, May 22, at 8 pm ET/PT on ABC.
