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'Wheel of Fortune' fans heartbroken as contestant loses out on Ford Bronco over simple puzzle

While the player, Rodney Flippen took the loss on the chin, fans were left heartbroken.
PUBLISHED OCT 2, 2025
Screenshot showing Rodney Flippen attempting his Bonus Round puzzle (Cover image source: YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)
Screenshot showing Rodney Flippen attempting his Bonus Round puzzle (Cover image source: YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)

"Wheel of Fortune" fans are elated whenever someone wins big on the show, and they express either outrage or heartbreak when a contestant misses out on a car or a significant amount of cash. Most recently, the fans were heartbroken after a cheery and entertaining contestant, Rodney Flippen, lost out on driving home a brand new car. While the player who made everyone laugh throughout the night was stumped in the end, he was happy to walk away with more than $27,000 as he came to the show with the goal of winning at least $7,000. While the player took the loss on the chin, fans cheered for him on social media.

Screenshot showing the moment of loss (Image source: YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)
Screenshot showing the moment of loss (Image source: YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)

The player got off to a rough start as his rival, Skolnik, took the early lead by solving the first Toss Up puzzle. Flippen fought back in the second round as he nearly equalled his rival's score. Flippen made a strong comeback in the Triple Toss Up round to emerge as the big winner of the night with a total of  $27,150. 

Advancing to the Bonus Round, Flippen chose the category, "What Are You Doing?" for his final puzzle and joined Seacrest at the wheel. "Back with our winner tonight, Rodney. Wanted to win how much to pay your bills?" Seacrest asked the player. "I wanted to win at least $7,000 to pay my bills," the player revealed. "But I want more than enough so I can really kind of do things for myself. So this is exciting. But really, even if I didn't win $27,000 in cash, I was happy to see Vanna in person. And Ryan. So it's awesome! And the crew here is awesome," Flippen added.

Screenshot showing Flippen at the wheel alongside Seacrest (Image source: YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)
Screenshot showing Flippen at the wheel alongside Seacrest (Image source: YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)

He then spun the wheel, picked out his Golden Envelope, and was faced with a three-word puzzle. With the show's standard letters, "R, S, T, L, N, E," given to him, Flippen didn't have many clues to work with. Thus, he went on to choose, "K, M, B, and O” as his additional letters, but they didn't help as the puzzle read, “_ _ _ _T_N_ M_ _ _ONE.” With only a few letters on the board, it was clear that Flippen was stumped.

Screenshot showing the Bonus Round puzzle (Image source: YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)
Screenshot showing the Bonus Round puzzle (Image source: YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)

As Seacrest kicked off the ten-second timer, Flippen tried his best to crack the puzzle. He yelled out guesses like “Waiting My Phone,” “Watching My Phone,” “Visiting My Phone,” and more, but none of them were correct. After the time ran out, White uncovered the correct answer, "Updating My Phone." Adding to the heartbreak, Seacrest revealed that Flippen had lost out on driving home a brand-new Ford Bronco Sport Big Bend.

Screenshot showing the player's reaction to the loss (Image source: YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)
Screenshot showing the player's reaction to the loss (Image source: YouTube/Wheel of Fortune)

The fans were heartbroken for him as he was such an entertaining contestant on the show. "Despite not winning the bonus round, he still did well throughout the game. I think Rodney is someone who should get a second shot at Wheel, similar to some contestants who played a second time as fan favorites," wrote a fan, @EC4U2C_Studioz, on

Watch the video here on YouTube

More on Market Realist: 

'Wheel of Fortune' contestant loses out on car because he couldn't identify a fruit correctly

'Wheel of Fortune' fans slam Ryan Seacrest for costing contestant $10,000 by interrupting her

'Wheel of Fortune' host Ryan Seacrest left impressed as player instantly solves $40,000 puzzle

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