Warning: Spoilers ahead.
Naperville North High School math teacher Jong Ho Kim isn’t sure if he is the only person to ever win the Illinois state math competition as a student and as a coach, but he confessed to “Jeopardy!” host Alex Trebek that he just says that because he has never heard of anyone else who has done so.
Sadly, in the first semi-final match of the 2020 Teachers Tournament, Kim didn’t bring home the win this time.
On Monday’s sudden death episode of “Jeopardy!”, Kim started off in the lead and managed to find the first “Daily Double” but could not answer correctly — losing $1,000. He entered the final round in third with $11,200 — betting $8,000.
The Lombard resident managed to get the “Final Jeopardy” clue correct, but it wasn’t enough to win the battle. He took second place with $19,200 while Virginia band and choir teacher Will Satterwhite walked away with the finalist spot and a total of $23,201.
“Jeopardy!” airs at 3:30 p.m. weekdays on WLS-Ch. 7. The tournament, which was taped in February, continues tomorrow.
Katie Labarge, who teaches high school science at in Cambridge, Mass., placed third on Monday’s episode and was also eliminated from the tournament.
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The winner is slated to receive $100,000 and a spot in the next Tournament of Champions. Colby Burnett was the last Chicago-area teacher to win this tournament, in 2012. He also won the Tournament of Champions in 2013.