'Wheel of Fortune' player gives fans a 'heart attack' before winning $100,000 with seconds to spare
'Wheel of Fortune' has evolved into a game show where fans connect with contestants and share the joy of their wins as much as the disappointment of their loss. The game can sometimes be cruel, especially in the Bonus Round where contestants have only ten seconds to solve a puzzle with big prizes on the line. Recently, a contestant named Brent gave viewers a heart attack by nearly missing out on a $100,000 prize.
In the episode, Brent, a career BBQ chef from Pocahontas, Arkansas, excelled in the initial rounds of the show to gain a lead on his fellow contestants. By the end of the games, Brent had collected an impressive $20,700 in prize money and a trip to St. Lucia. With this, he proceeded to the show's coveted Bonus Round where he had a chance of winning the top prize of $100,000. To make things more emotionally charged, Brent brought his parents to the stage to cheer him on for the final puzzle. After spinning the wheel, host Ryan Seacrest picked out the golden envelope from the 'A' spot.
For his final puzzle, the contestant selected the “Food and Drink,” category and got a three-word puzzle on the board. With the standard letters "R, S, T, L, N, and E" filled in, the player went on to choose the additional letters of “G, C, P, and O.” It turns out the letter choices of the player were excellent, as the bonus round puzzle read, “_OT _ _ _ GE TOPP_NG’. Even Seacrest remarked that it was looking all good for the player.
However, when the ten-second timer started ticking, Brent appeared to be absolutely stumped. While he got the first two words "HOT" and "TOPPING" right, he was blank when it came to the final word. After guessing "HOT LARGE TOPPING" Brent took a brief pause escalating the tension. With nearly just a second to spare, the player guessed "HOT FUDGE TOPPING" which turned out to be correct. As the player celebrated, Seacrest opened the golden envelope, and it was revealed that Brent had won the top prize of $100,000 by a thin margin.
An explosion of confetti ensued with Brent hugging his parents and the co-host Vanna White joining in the celebrations. “You did it!” Seacrest exclaimed, as the grand prize total of $120,704, appeared on the screen.
While everything turned out well in the end for the player, viewers had a hard time watching the bonus round. Talking about the emotional rollercoaster, they went through, one fan @anniegao9105 wrote, "What a great way to start off this week and it literally gave me a heart attack!"
"The pressure to solve this - well done!" @sushifornico added. Several others echoed the sentiment as well. "I AM SO GLAD HE GOT IT IN TIME! I SOLVED IT MYSELF! AND IT WAS SO CLOSE TOO! I would have been so disappointed if he lost," @06MAN said. "I was just yelling FUDGE," @TheJohnny928 mentioned.
