‘The Price is Right’ contestant’s $49,000 car dream ends in heartbreak after three strikes
Despite a poor start, the contestant came close to winning the big prize.
Feb. 25 2026, Published 7:31 a.m. ET
It's an incredible feeling when players get to win a car on 'The Price Is Right," but most don't get to experience it. We have even seen some come real close before missing out on the grand prize at the last second, which is honestly heartbreaking. That is exactly what one contestant experienced in a recent episode of the show, as she overcame a rocky start but missed out on the grand prize at the very end.
The contestant was a woman named Emily, who had made her way to the stage from the Contestant’s Row. She was playing a game called ‘Three Strikes,’ the rules of which are simple. A contestant will have to guess the price of the car, and they will have to use baseballs to do so. There will be five baseballs, each with a digit in the price of the car, and three red baseballs, which signify strikes.
Host Drew Carey explained that the goal was to get the five numbered balls before the three red ones. The contestant also has to guess the exact price of the car by arranging the digits properly. If they are wrong, that ball goes back into a baseball-shaped bag, from which they are drawn. Unfortunately, Emily had a poor start as she picked a red ball right at the beginning, and the disappointment on her face was quite evident.
She then picked a 2 and said that it was the second digit in the price of the car, which was incorrect. Fortunately, she drew the same ball again and guessed that it was the third digit, but this, too, was incorrect. Her next pick was the second red ball, which meant that she had conceded two strikes. The chances of her winning the car now seemed increasingly low, but the host remained optimistic.
Emily's next pick was a 4, which she said was the first digit in the car’s price. That was the correct answer. Next, she drew a 9 and said that it was the second digit, which was correct again. However, her third draw was the number 2 ball, and she guessed the position incorrectly. Thankfully, she drew the same ball again and finally got her answer right. It was the fourth digit in the car’s price.
Emily now had three balls in the bag and two spots to fill. It seemed like she had some hope, but her next pick was the third red ball, meaning that it was the third strike. Naturally, she was extremely disappointed by the loss but managed to smile through it all. Drew Carey then revealed that the car was worth $49,825, but reminded Emily that she had already won a trip earlier in the show.
You can watch Emily's heartbreaking loss here.
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