James Holzhauer is money — and “Jeopardy!” is (also) reaping the rewards.
“Jeopardy!” just hit a four-year high the week ending April 28, with a 7.5 rating, up 12% from the previous week. In terms of its fellow syndicated shows, only perpetual giant “Judge Judy” came close to that number, with a seven-week high of 7.0 (up 8% week over week).
The long-running game show can thank Holzhauer’s huge winning streak for its ratings bump, as viewers tune in to see how far the “Jeopardy!” sensation can go. As of May 3, the professional sports gambler has won nearly $1.7 million over 22 games. Only “Jeopardy!” legend Ken Jennings — who won 74 games back in 2004 — has won more in regular play.
However, because “Jeopardy!” is airing a “Teachers Tournament” through May 17, Holzhauer is not set to compete again until May 20. In other words, he’ll miss most of the rest of sweeps. The May sweep period runs from April 25 to May 22.
In terms of talk shows, with a 2.7, “Dr. Phil” was the highest-rated of that genre for its whopping 138th straight week.
“Live With Kelly and Ryan” was second with a 2.2, “Ellen” earned bronze with a 1.9. Further down the syndicated-ratings sheet were “Maury” and “Wendy Williams” with 1.4s, and “Steve,” with a 1.2.