'Wheel of Fortune' contestant solves tough puzzle to win $40,000 and one more chance to play
"Wheel of Fortune" is hosting the NASCAR tournament, in which winners can also compete for a finale at the end of the week. In a recent episode, a contestant called Ray secured his spot in the NASCAR finale by winning a whopping $72,950 after guessing the answer to an easy puzzle. Ray, however, lost the chance to collect $1 million by a small margin even after winning the wedge during the game round.
Ray dominated the game by winning the first Toss-Up round called "Pole Position". During Round 1, in the category Movie Title, he guessed "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby" and won $4,050 along with a chance to play for $1 million in the bonus round. He moved on to solving the crossword puzzle with "Swift, Slow, Fast, Sluggish," adding to his lead. During Round 3, in the category Guilty Pleasure, Ray answered, "Splurging on Room Service" and won a luxurious trip to Belize worth $12,000. He advanced to the bonus round with a total of $32,950.
Ray then chose the category "Phrase." After receiving the standard letters "R, S, T, L, N, and E," he chose "D, B, G, and I" to help him guess the correct answer. The puzzle board then displayed, "B, E, _, _, N, D, _, _, R, D, S." "Behind cards? Behind Fords? Behind words? Beyond words?" Ray fumbled with the answers before blurting out the right one. "You’re coming back on Friday. And let me show you where that million-dollar envelope is. If we were to land on this one star, you would have seen that," host Ryan Seacrest reacted while revealing the million-dollar envelope on the wheel.
Ray solved "Beyond Words", winning an additional $40,000, bringing his total to $72,950 and winning a spot in the NASCAR finale on Friday. Fans actually wished Ray would win a million dollars. "Contestant Ray, who once built a miniature Fenway Wiffle Ball Stadium, is well ahead of the competition and possesses the Million Dollar wedge. Rooting for him," u/TurnipLoud4452 wrote on "Wheel of Fortune" Reddit forum. "Day idk of hoping Ryan stops with the fake reveals. Tell us outright if it’s the million or not, stop playing with my heart," u/Alternative-Koala933 shared. "The answer to the bonus round was, 'BEYOND WORDS.' Ray struggled with the word above, but managed to solve it and advance to Friday's Pairs Match. Incidentally, the $1 million prize spot was off by three," u/sy1971ofJapan chimed in.
You can watch the exciting moment here.
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