'Price is Right' player was on his knees in excitement before the game began — then ended up losing

The contestant was clearly just happy to win the chance of being on the same stage as Drew Carey.

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July 13 2025, Published 12:46 p.m. ET

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The energy that “The Price is Right” contestants bring to the sets is the one thing that stands out about the show. However, their celebrations can be a little premature at times. That’s what happened in an earlier episode of the show, in which a contestant had all the energy in the world when he won his way to the stage from Contestants’ Row. He seemed to be in a celebratory mood right from the get-go, but was not able to win anything later on.

The contestant named John jumped around with his arms raised in the air and even got down on both knees at one point. Even Drew Carey was taken aback by this level of enthusiasm at one point. “I can’t believe it,” he said. This potential prize was then revealed to be a couple of Honda motorcycles.

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The game that he played was called ‘Flip Flops’, in which contestants get to see an incorrect price of the item before guessing the right one. They do so by flipping the panels they’re written on. For example, the price displayed on this occasion was $9,789. However, the first two digits were on one panel and the last two were on another.

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If contestants flip a panel, they get to see the mirror opposite of the number. Therefore, the panel with ‘97’ written on it, when flipped, shows 79, and the one with ‘89’ written on it, when flipped, shows 98. The contestant has to either flip one of the two panels or both panels in order to get the correct answer. If they get the price right, they win the big prize. The game is a lot tougher than it sounds.

John, who seemed to be full of confidence, only flipped the second panel to make the price $9,798. He knew that this was a big gamble and looked to the audience for help after doing so. He then stepped away from the game, confirming his decision. “Check with your friends?” Carey said as the contestant confirmed his answer. It was time to reveal whether he had won the big prize or not.

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Unfortunately, that was not the case. The host pressed the button, and the correct price was revealed to be $7,998. John had to flip both the boards to get the correct answer, but that was not the case. All that enthusiasm and energy at the beginning did not translate into a victory, and the disappointment was clear from the contestant’s reaction. He held his head in his hands and once again went down on his knees.

There were no hard feelings, however, as he hugged Carey and thanked him for a great time on the set.

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