JEOPARDY! contestant Jennifer Quail has snatched a stunning upset win against two formidable foes in the show’s new Invitational Tournament.

She left Chaser Brandon Blackwell and 2015 ToC winner Alex Jacob in the dust by outsmarting them from last place on Final Jeopardy.

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Jennifer Quail was the only contestant to get Final Jeopardy as ‘Midnight’Credit: Jeopardy!

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She proved she’s not one to be slept on, looking stunned, and her opponents looked peevedCredit: Jeopardy!

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She exclaimed as she advanced to the JIT semis, ‘How did that happen!?’Credit: Jeopardy!
The JIT sees 27 power players coming out of the woodwork fighting for $100,000 and an invitation to the 2024 Jeopardy Masters tournament.

Jennifer had her work cut out for her, given one of her fellow quarterfinalists runs an online trivia boot camp and the other is now “The Lightning Bolt” on The Chase.

But what fans didn’t know is that the wine-tasting consultant from Michigan and 2021 ToC runner-up came in as a connoisseur on Final Jeopardy.

After the Jeopardy! round, Alex led with $6,600, Jennifer had just $1,600, and Brandon had $6,200.

In Double Jeopardy!, Jennifer seized a momentary lead on the second Daily Double, boasting $10,600, but Brandon found the remaining one doubling to $22,800.

“This is perhaps the most competitive game of the quarterfinals so far,” Ken Jennings remarked.

Going into Final Jeopardy, Brandon looked like a sure thing holding $23,600, Alex had $14,200, and Jennifer had $11,000.

The clue under “OLD WORDS” read, “First appearing in an English dictionary in 1623, mesonoxian means pertaining to this word.”

Jennifer revealed she correctly wrote “Midnight” and shrugged as she doubled her score to $22,000.

Alex wrote a shout-out dropping to $0, and Brandon incorrectly wrote, “Asleep” dropping to $18799 as both power players shook their heads.

Jennifer’s jaw dropped as she stood in stunned silence. Ken declared, “Jennifer Quail, from third place, you are now a semifinalist!”

Jennifer’s mouth remained agape as she exclaimed, “How did that happen?”

‘MAJOR SHOCKER’

Fans flooded social media, stunned by the come-from-behind win that no one, including Jennifer, saw coming.

“News flash: Jennifer Quail is good at Final Jeopardy,” one Reddit user wrote.

“This makes her 13 for 14 lifetime, I believe,” another remarked.

“What a game, the best one of the tournament; I hope Brandon gets another shot in the future because he was impressive today. Jennifer was able to steal one from third,” wrote another.

“Ahhhh Jennifer slayed!!” gushed a fourth. “In all seriousness, I didn’t think this was a particularly difficult final. Surprised two missed it.”

A fifth wrote, “The first major shocker at JIT!”

‘POOR SPORTSMANSHIP’

Others noted that neither defeated player seemed to clap, but instead looked pretty upset and stared blankly ahead.

“I have never noticed such bad sportsmanship displayed as the two guys on this show,” one X user wrote.

“Looks like those two guys might have been a couple of sore losers on @Jeopardy Win with grace, lose with grace,” wrote another.

“Alex seems to have been a sore loser. He didn’t even look at the winner. A simple ‘Congratulations’ would have been nice. #Jeopardy,” wrote one more.

WINNER REACTS: ‘NO WAY ON EARTH!’

Jennifer took to the Reddit fan thread “lovingly” shading her formidable opponents for missing Final Jeopardy.

She wrote, “I KNEW I was getting outbuzzed (Alex was creaming both of us on buzzer speed, if I remember correctly what Ken said at the end).

“And while my total was okay, and wagering from 3rd is WAY better than wagering from second in FJ.

“I just figured sure, odds are I’ll get it right, I get final right at home probably 80% of the time.

“But there is NO WAY ON EARTH both of these monsters (said with love) get it wrong AND fail to account for me doubling up from third.”

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Brandon (left) was a Teen Tournament semifinalist in 2008 before becoming a ChaserCredit: ABC

WHAT IS: THE JIT?

The JIT is a brand-new tournament airing from March 20 until early April.

Unlike other tournaments this season, JIT opens the floodgates to iconic older champions who fans haven’t seen in decades.

The three-week JIT sees past greats – some recent ones, and even contestants-turned-Chasers – back at the buzzer.

There will be nine quarterfinal games, three semifinals, and a best-of-four final.

This means the legendary player who notches two final games wins the title.

The now-annual throwdown will decide one of the six spots in Masters, with the first three going to last season’s finalists – Matt Amodio, winner James, and Mattea Roach.

The other Master’s slots go to Yogesh Raut for winning the 2024 Tournament of Champions and a still-unannounced Producer’s Pick.

After JIT, regular episodes resume for the first time this season either between April 8 and April 10.

JIT LINEUP

A murderer’s row of 27 trivia titans are returning

Sam Buttrey – finalist in the 2022 Tournament of Champions and sixth place in Masters Season 1
Amy Schneider- winner of the 2022 Tournament of Champions and fifth place in Masters Season 1
Andrew He – runnerup in the 2022 Tournament of Champions and fourth place in Masters Season 1
Brandon Blackwell – Chaser on The Chase and Teen Tournament semifinalist
Colby Burnett – winner of the 2013 Tournament of Champions and third-place in the team-based 2019 All-Star Games
Lily Chin – winner of the 2017 College Championship and 2017 ToC semifinalist
Leonard Cooper- winner of the 2013 Teen Tournament and All-Stars Games player
Celeste DiNucci – winner of the 2007 Tournament of Champions
Chuck Forrest – Season 2 five-day champ from 1985 and 1986 Tournament of Champions winner
Dhruv Gaur – 2019 Tournament of Champions semifinalist
Ben Ingram – eight-day champion and winner of the 2014 Tournament of Champions
Alex Jacob – winner of the 2015 Tournament of Champions
Mackenzie Jones – eight-day champion and 2015 ToC quarterfinalist
Sam Kavanaugh – winner of the 2021 Tournament of Champions
Larissa Kelly – six-day champion and 2019 All-Star Games winner
Alan Lin – six-day champion and 2009 ToC runner-up
David Madden – 19-day champion in 2005, the second-longest streak holder next to Ken for decades, and All-Star Games winner
Pam Mueller – 2001 ToC semifinalist and third place in 2019 All-Star Games
Austin Rogers – 13-game champion and 2017 ToC runner-up
Monica Theiu – 2012 College Championship winner
Jason Zuffranieri – 19-day champion
Arthur Chu – 11-day winner and 2014 Tournament of Champions runner-up
Victoria Groce – “The Queen” on The Chase, one-day champion
Matt Jackson – 13-day champion and 2015 ToC runner-up

WHO IS: WINNING SO FAR?

Here are the contestants who have won their first matches and are now semifinalists:

Andrew He won the premiere after getting knocked out of Masters Season 1.

Larissa Kelly, who won last Friday’s match and previously won the 2019 All-Star Games and was the 2009 ToC runner-up.

Matt Jackson, who returned for a big win after winning 13 games in 2015.

Amy Schneider who had a big runaway win on Monday night after also getting knocked out of Masters Season 1.

David Madden after a hotly-contested Daily Double cost Arthur Chu the game.

Jeopardy! airs at 7 p.m. ET on ABC, where fans can catch all the JIT action.

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Jennifer wrote on Reddit, ‘I figured there is NO WAY ON EARTH both of these monsters get it wrong AND fail to account for me doubling up from third’Credit: Jeopardy!

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Ken Jennings hosts the JIT, which finally saw its first upset until early April