Amy Schneider keeps making ‘Jeopardy!’ history. How does she compare to past champs?
Update on Jan. 26: Amy Schneider’s streak came to an end after 40 consecutive wins. Read more about what ended her run here.
Amy Schneider’s winning streak on “Jeopardy!” continues to reach historic levels, as she now holds the record for the most money won by a woman.
The engineering manager from Oakland, California, has won 39 straight games on “Jeopardy! as of Jan. 24, surpassing Matt Amodio for the second-most consecutive wins on the show. Her $1,319,800 in winnings place her fourth all time.
“It still feels unreal,” Schneider said. “Knowing that I had this chance, I was definitely thinking about it. Then Ken said it, and I thought, ‘Alright, I just accomplished this huge thing’ and it was pretty great.”
When she won her fifth consecutive game, Schneider became the first transgender person to qualify for the show’s annual Tournament of Champions, McClatchy News reported at the time. As the streak has continued, she surpassed Julia Collins on Dec. 29 for the most consecutive wins by a woman.
“I think that the best part for me has been being on TV, you know, as my true self, expressing myself and representing the entire community of trans people and ... just being, you know, a smart, confident woman and doing something super normal like being on “Jeopardy!”” she said on “Good Morning America” on Monday, Jan. 24.
Larissa Kelly, who previously held the record for most money won on “Jeopardy!” by a woman, gave Schneider a shout out when she broke her mark.
“Well, it was fun to hold a Jeopardy record for a few years...but it’s been even more fun to watch @Jeopardamy set new standards for excellence, on the show and off,” Kelly said.
Schneider has her eyes set on the big three of Ken Jennings, Amodio and Holzhauer, who have won the most money in the show’s history. She has a long way to go to catch all three for highest winnings, but her per-game averages stack up well.
Her average winnings of $33,841 per show are slightly behind Jennings, but Holzhauer’s historic pace of $76,944 per show remains unmatched.
“I’ve been watching the show since I was a kid,” Schneider said through ‘Jeopardy!.’ “I’ve watched all the people on this list, and to see my name up with them is a very good feeling.”
Consecutive games won:
Ken Jennings in 2004: 74 games
Amy Schneider in 2022: 39 games
Matt Amodio in 2021: 38 games
James Holzhauer in 2019: 32 games
Julia Collins in 2014: 20 games
Highest winnings (regular-season play)
Ken Jennings: $2,520,700
James Holzhauer: $2,462,216
Matt Amodio: $1,518,601
Amy Schneider: $1,319,800
Jason Zuffranieri: $532,496
This story was originally published December 27, 2021 at 10:25 AM with the headline "Amy Schneider keeps making ‘Jeopardy!’ history. How does she compare to past champs?."