James Holzhauer Is Dangerously Close to Breaking Ken Jennings’ ‘Jeopardy!’ Record

James Holzhauer could surpass Ken Jennings’ record within a few games

As of Memorial Day, “Jeopardy!” whiz James Holzhauer is up to a whopping $2,195,557 in winnings. That means he’s only $325,143 away from surpassing “Jeopardy!” legend Ken Jennings’ record of $2,520,700 won over 74 games.

Though $325,000 might sound like a long way for Holzhauer to go, he could get there as early as next week, according to Jeopardy.com.

“At his average daily winnings rate, James could pass Ken’s total in six games,” read a statement in a video posted to the official “Jeopardy!” site on May 24. That day, he passed the $2 million mark, bringing him to $2,065,535 — but since then, he’s added $130,022 to his winnings.

Titled “James Holzhaer vs. Ken Jennings by the Numbers,” the video displays infographics comparing the game show’s two biggest champions. Some of the most compelling statistics include their response accuracy rates — on average, Holzhauer’s responses have been 97% accurate, while Jennings’ were only 91% accurate. Over the 74 games Jennings played, his average daily winnings were $34,064 — over the 28 games Holzhauer has played, his average daily winnings are $78,413. It took 27 games for Jennings to amass $868,960 in winnings, while Holzhauer made it to $2,065,535 in that time. As it stands now, Holzhauer has a total of $2,195,557.

It’s worth noting that Holzhauer is only about five games away from beating Jennings’ record even if he just sticks to his single-day winnings average of $78,413. His all-time highest single-day score was $131,127, according to Jeopardy.com.

“Jeopardy!” airs weeknights on NBC. Holzhauer will compete again Tuesday night as the returning champion — see what time “Jeopardy!” airs in your area here.

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