Wheel of Fortune player wins $67,000 with an unexpected move — even Pat Sajak was speechless

The popular game show "Wheel of Fortune" has had a fair share of spectacular upsets and triumphs in its long years of running. However, one contestant stood out for his lightning-quick guesses and impressive performance in the game. Earlier this year, Alex Harrell, a marine pilot, was dubbed as the "best contestant ever" as he won over $67,000 and travel packages.

An impressive run

Harrell from Stafford, Virginia, served for over nine years in the Marine Corps as an Osprey pilot, according to TV Insider. Appearing in the show, Harrell told host Pat Sajak that he was stationed in San Diego, California. He shared that he had an 18-month-old daughter and a boy on the way, so he would love to win some money.

Harrell went up against Betty Hunter, a “sports mom” from Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Kaley Keller, a farmer from Sulphur, Louisiana. Even though he appeared nervous, the two ladies barely stood a chance as Harrell stormed to take the lead right at the start of the episode.

By the end of the Mystery Round, Harrell had made $13,648 and won a cruise trip. The marine who shared that his job took him all over the world, won another trip to the Divi Dutch Village in Aruba (worth $9,357) and increased his earning to $27,105 in the Express Round. 

Even the veteran host of the show, Pat Sajak was impressed with Harrell. “Wow… He’s having quite a run,”  he remarked.  While Keller tried to provide a challenge, Harrell crushed the rounds and won the episode to move on to the bonus round. 

Won in seconds

In the bonus round, Harrell's skills truly shone. For the round, he picked the category “Food and Drink.” He got the additional letters H, G, P, and, O and the clue read T _ P _ O _ _ / P _ _ _ _ N G on the screen. 

“Don't go telling me you’re nervous, you’re a marine pilot for god sake,” Sajak joked as Harrell was about to guess. And Sajak was right as it only took a second for Harrell to guess the right answer. Right out the gates, he shouted “Tapioca Pudding," and solved the puzzle. 

Sajak then revealed the bonus envelope which showed that Harrell had won an extra $40,000 in the bonus round. Harrell took home $67,150 and the two trips he won. 

The audience was well impressed with Harrel and his superfast guesses. "Way to go, Alex. Best contestant ever tonight!" wrote user @myles-spikewebby8519. "intense bonus round, he rocked it," added @isaacmackey1406. However, when a fellow contestant lost, the audience booed in another episode of the show. The contestant, Paul Dodson, who amassed $33,550 as he went into the bonus round, allegedly lost out a shot at the $1 million prize because of an unfair puzzle. 

The puzzle for Dodson read, "_ _ _ _ _ L _ N _." With the letters R, S, T, L, N, and E given as standard. Dodson went on to guess the common letters, C, H, P, A, none of which fit, costing him the round. The word was finally revealed as "QUIBBLING". The audience gasped as the answer was shown and they turned to booing.

On YouTube, viewers felt like Dodson was robbed and the puzzle was rather impossible to solve. "EVIL bonus round puzzle! EVILLLL!" commented one viewer @Netstryke.

This article originally appeared 1 month ago.