'Wheel of Fortune' Player Misses Huge $97k Win on Puzzle

Wheel of Fortune gets backlash after contestant loses $97k on ‘Impossible’ puzzle during the show’s 50th anniversary. Keep reading to find out more.

Wheel of Fortune

Wheel of Fortune is an American game show that has been on the air since 1975. The show was created by Merv Griffin, who also created the show Jeopardy. Wheel of Fortune premiered on NBC on January 6, 1975. The show is now on ABC and is hosted by Ryan Seacrest, and is celebrating its 60th anniversary. In the episode on January, 8,2025 there were 3 contestants who each were in the five figures in the beginning. The contestants were Jason Blackwell from Spartanburg, South Carolina, Jennifer Hawkins from Ypsilanti, Michigan, and Amber Holland from Visaliam California. Jason Blackwell, a maintenance electrician, had been losing the entire game. He finally, in the last round earned $24,000 by himself. Leading him to win the game with $3,000 more than his opponents making his total $27,000.

Going into the Bouns Round Seacrest told Blackwell the last episode had a $50,000 minimum for the anniversary. Jason Blackwell chose the “What Are You Doing?” category, and the board gave him a two-word ten-letter phrase but only one letter had been revealed. Jason Blackwell then picked four more letters which did not work in his favor. He ended with the phrase on the board showing ” G _ _ _ _ N G/ _ _ _.” Blackwell, frustrated, sighed heavily realizing he wouldn’t get the phrase correct. He even tried to make a joke and guessed the phrase “Not getting this prize”. As he guessed he ran out of time and lost a chance at $70,000.

Upset Fans

Fans of the show were upset and posted comments on YouTube about how low the odds were of winning the game. Some of the comments read “Nearly impossible under that pressure.” and ” Very tricky tough puzzle.” One of the fans even suggested that the writers look like they will pick the words with the letter that will be called the least such as F, W, or least popular. Ryan Seacrest even told Jason Blackwell in the Bonus Round that he wasn’t given ” A lot to work with” and also said, “I don’t know how you’re going to get there.” While some fans were upset, others appreciated the level of competition by all three contestants. One comment on Andy Nguyen’s Wheel recap site wrote “WHOA – you couldn’t get a better 50th-anniversary episode than this, sans the BR loss.”

The 50th-anniversary episode was competitive and challenging. Jason Blackwell was trailing the other two contestants the whole game up until the last round and ended up on top. His luck ran out in the Bonus Round but, was that just fate? Do you think the show is rigged? Should the puzzles be easier to solve? Let us know what you think in the comments.