New Paltz man back on ‘Jeopardy!’ tonight
Barcomb vies for spot in tourney finals
Francois Barcomb makes his bid to reach the Tournament of Champions finals when he competes in a semifinal game.
New Paltz resident Francois Barcomb makes his bid to reach the “Jeopardy!” Tournament of Champions finals when he competes in the semifinal game that airs Wednesday.
Barcomb, who won the game show’s $100,000 Teachers Tournament in the spring, will be up against Gilbert Collins, a New Jersey resident who racked up $84,201 in a five-game winning streak in 2018, and Lindsey Shultz of Pennsylvania, who won $103,002 over four games.
If Barcomb advances, he’ll compete in the two-day finals against Emma Boettcher, who won the semifinal game that aired Monday, and James Holzhauer, who won the Tuesday semifinal.
Holzhauer, a professional sports gambler, amassed a near-record $2.46 million by winning 32 consecutive games last season. It was Boettcher who ended Holzhauer’s winning streak in his 33rd appearance.
Barcomb, who teaches physics at Hendrick Hudson High School in Westchester County, reached the semifinals by scoring a runaway win in his quarterfinal game, which aired last Friday.
The two-day championship airs Thursday and Friday. The $250,000 grand prize will go to whichever player has the highest cumulative score.
Locally, “Jeopardy!” airs at 7 p.m. on WABC-TV 7 out of New York City and at 7:30 p.m. on WTEN-TV 10 out of Albany.
“Jeopardy!” episodes are recorded in advance, but players are forbidden from sharing the results before they air.