Jeopardy! fans have a fun new tournament to watch, as the classic game show has launched the inaugural Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament. Twenty-seven popular and accomplished Jeopardy! players return for this special event that is taking place over the next few weeks.
This is the latest special tournament that Jeopardy! has debuted in recent years, including Celebrity Jeopardy! (season 2 of which wrapped up in early 2024) and Jeopardy! Masters in spring 2023 (Jeopardy! Masters 2024 is confirmed to return sometime this year). The big difference between the Invitational Tournament and those other Jeopardy! tournaments is that it won't be airing in primetime, instead taking up the daily Jeopardy! spot that varies depending on where you are.
Find out everything you need to know about the first-ever Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament directly below.
Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament next episode
The third and final round of the Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament final between Amy Schneider, Victoria Groce and Andrew He is set to take place tonight, Tuesday, April 9.
Again, this tournament is airing as part of the nationally syndicated daily Jeopardy!, which airs on different channels and different times across the US depending on where you live. If you need to find out those specifics, you can get the channel and time info for your zipcode through the Jeopardy! website.
In most cases, the Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament is going to air on one of the four main broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, Fox or NBC), and so is available either through a traditional pay-TV provider, a TV antenna or live TV streaming services like Fubo, Hulu with Live TV, Sling TV or YouTube TV.
Who has advanced in the Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament?
Here's who has advanced from the semifinals to the Jeopardy! Invitational finals:
- Amy Schneider
- Andrew He
- Victoria Groce
Jeopardy! Invitational contestants
Some of the best players in Jeopardy! history have been invited back to the Alex Trebek Stage to compete in the 2024 Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament. Here is a complete list of the 27 contestants; some of these past players are deep cuts:
Brandon Blackwell
- 2008 Teen Tournament Wildcard semifinalist
- Chaser in ABC's The Chase season 3
Colby Burnett
- 2012 Teachers Tournament winner
- 2013 Tournament of Champions winner
- 2019 All-Star Games second runner-up (Team Colby)
Sam Buttrey (semifinalist)
- 2021 Professors Tournament winner
- 2022 Tournament of Champions second runner-up
- 2023 Jeopardy! Masters sixth place
Lilly Chin
- 2017 College Championship Winner
- 2017 Tournament of Champions Wildcard semifinalist
Arthur Chu
- Season 30 11-game super-champion
- 2014 Tournament of Champions first runner-up
- Regular season winnings: $297,200
Leonard Cooper
- 2013 Teen Tournament winner
- 2019 All-Star Games competitor (Team Austin)
Celeste DiNucci
- Season 22 five-game champion
- 2007 Tournament of Champions winner
- Regular season winnings: $83,601
Chuck Forrest
- Season 2 five-game champion
- 1986 Tournament of Champions winner
- Regular season winnings: $72,800
Dhruv Gaur
- 2018 College Championship winner
- 2019 Tournament of Champions semifinalist
Victoria Groce (finalist)
- Season 22 one-game champion, defeated David Madden
- Appeared as chaser on ABC’s The Chase season 3
- Regular season winnings: $22,801
Andrew He (finalist)
- Season 38 five-game champion
- 2022 Tournament of Champions first runner-up
- 2023 Jeopardy! Masters fourth place
- Regular season winnings: $157,365
Ben Ingram
- Season 29 eight-game champion
- 2014 Tournament of Champions winner
- Regular season winnings: $176,534
Alex Jacob
- Season 31 six-game champion
- 2015 Tournament of Champions winner
- Regular season winnings: $149, 802
Matt Jackson (semifinalist)
- Season 32 13-game super-champion
- 2015 Tournament of Champions first runner-up
- Regular season winnings: $411,612
MacKenzie Jones
- Season 36 eight-game champion
- 2021 Tournament of Champions quarterfinalist
- Regular season winnings: $204,808
Sam Kavanaugh (semifinalist)
- Season 35 five-game champions
- 2021 Tournament of Champions winner
- Regular season winnings: $156,202
Larissa Kelly (semifinalist)
- Season 24 six-game champion
- 2009 Tournament of Champions first runner-up
- 2019 All-Star Games winner (Team Brad)
- Regular season winnings: $222,597
Alan Lin
- Season 33 six-game champion
- 2017 Tournament of Champion first runner-up
- Regular season winnings: $123,600
David Madden (semifinalist)
- Season 21/22 19-game super-champion
- 2019 All-Star Games winner (Team Brad)
- Regular season winnings: $430,400
Pam Mueller
- 2000 College Championship winner
- 2001 Tournament of Champions semifinalist
- 2019 All-Star Game second runner-up (Team Colby)
Terry O'Shea
- 2014 College Championship winner
- 2014 Tournament of Champions semifinalist
Dan Pawson
- Season 24 nine-game winner
- 2009 Tournament of Champions winner
- Regular season winnings: $170,902
Jennifer Quail (semifinalist)
- Season 36 eight-game champion
- 2021 Tournament of Champions first runner-up
- Regular season winnings: $228,800
Austin Rogers
- Season 34 12-game super-champion
- 2017 Tournament of Champions second runner-up
- Regular season winnings: $411,000
Amy Schneider (finalist)
- Season 38 40-game super-champion
- 2022 Tournament of Champions winner
- 2023 Jeopardy! Masters fifth place
- Regular season winning: $1,382,800
Monica Thieu
- 2012 College Championship winner
- 2013 Tournament of Champions quarterfinalist
- 2019 All-Star Games first runner-up (Team Ken)
Jason Zuffranieri
- Season 35/36 19-game super-champion
- 2021 Tournament of Champions semifinalist
- Regular season winnings: $532,496
Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament format
The Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament will feature nine quarterfinal games of Jeopardy! (three players each), with the winners from each moving on to three semifinal games. Those winners will then move onto the finals, which is a "best of four," with the first contestant to win two games being the first Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament champion.
There is no indication at this time that the game play will be any different than traditional Jeopardy! So expect two rounds of clues, with Double Jeopardy opportunities sprinkled throughout, all culminating in a Final Jeopardy round. The contestant with the most cash at the end of the game will be the winner.
Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament host
Ken Jennings is going to host the Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament. Jennings has become the sole host of Jeopardy!, after he previously shared hosting duties with Mayim Bialik following a search to replace the legendary Alex Trebek.
Jennings is of course himself a former Jeopardy! contestant, widely considered one of the greatest of all time.
