Trivia all-star James Holzhauer banked another $86,905 Tuesday for his 24th consecutive win on “Jeopardy!,” bringing his grand total to $1,867,142.
With tonight’s honors, Holzhauer now has the highest per-game average in the history of “Jeopardy!,” which has been on the air for nearly 50 years.
“James could not be caught — what else is new?” host Alex Trebek quipped.
The 34-year-old pro gambler has already surpassed contestant Roger Craig, who previously set the single-day record back in 2010 with $77,000. Holzhauer bested Craig on April 9 when he brought in $110,914 in one game, then broke his own record on April 17 with $131,127.
At this rate, he’s now averaging above Craig’s old record with nearly $78,000 per game.
There’s still one fierce competitor to beat: Computer scientist Ken Jennings, who took home over $2.5 million during a 74-game winning streak back in 2004.
Earlier this week, Jennings penned an op-ed in The Washington Post in support of Holzhauer, who has garnered some criticism from “Jeopardy!” fans for making the game show no fun to watch.
“I’m the only person alive who knows firsthand how difficult it is to do what Holzhauer is doing, and that’s why I’m rooting him on,” Jennings said. “I may hold a bunch of ‘Jeopardy!’ records, but at heart I’m just a fan of the show. And for any real ‘Jeopardy!’ fan, this streak is something special.”
Additional reporting by Keith Williams