What Happens If Too Many People Qualify For ‘Jeopardy!’ TOC?

Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions

Every episode of Jeopardy! sees players compete for a cash prize, and the longer the people are on the show, the more they can win. However, these players are also trying to make their way to the Tournament of Champions. Some viewers have started to wonder what happens if more people qualify for the Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions than there is room for? Is there even a chance that could happen? Here is what we know.

How to qualify for Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions

The Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions qualification is laid out clearly. If a person wins their episode of the game show, they return and compete against two new competitors in the next episode. Originally, if a person won five consecutive days, they would make it to the Tournament of Champions. That changed in 2003. At that time, the person had to retire undefeated. In September 2003, Jeopardy! changed the rules to allow people to play for as many days as possible until they finally lost.

Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions

Now, each year at the Tournament of Champions, the players who won the most games and money in the previous season return to compete against each other. These tournaments normally feature 15 contestants and run for 10 consecutive episo0des. The first five episodes have three new contestants every day. The winner at the end gets $250,000. Winners of the College Championship and Teachers Tournament can also compete in the Tournament of Champions.

What if too many players qualify for Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions?

Jeopardy! fans on Reddit wanted to know how many people could qualify for the Tournament of Champions. The original poster asked what would happen if more people qualified than the show has room for in its format. One person reasoned that there could be 46 total people a season if everyone hit five wins in a row and that was it.

Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions

Another person responded that it has happened before, and they usually make room. In those cases where there is no room, the extra winners will likely carry over to the next season. Another person disagreed and thought that they would just change the format to get them all to fit into the postseason.

There are changes to the Tournament of Champions this season

There have been changes to Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions this season. There is a new format this year, which includes byes into the semi-finals for Amy Schneider, Matt Amodio, and Mattea Roach. The reason for this was that these three competitors were ahead of the curve. So, producers can make changes as needed, and that is likely what happens when there are too many competitors.

What is your favorite Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions moment? Who do you think is the best of the best? Let us know in the comments below.

Shawn Lealos
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