Ken Jennings surprises ‘Jeopardy!’ contestant with ‘mean’ surprise announcement
Former “Jeopardy!” contestant Sean McShane is headed to the Tournament of Champions — a dream that became reality after he was bamboozled by host Ken Jennings.
McShane, who grew up in West Islip, Long Island, won three games and over $82,000 on the beloved quiz show in December, which made him one game show of qualifying for the show’s Tournament of Champions, according to its traditional rules.
But, as he recently told The Post, “I was thinking in the back of my head that they were going to invite me to the wildcard tournament.”
“Jeopardy Champions Wildcard,” which is currently underway, is a second-chance competition for contestants who just merely missed qualifying for the Champ tournament.
On Tuesday, McShane, a Boston College grad, appeared on the city’s CBS news station to discuss possibly returning for the wildcard tourney when the broadcaster told him they had a message from Jennings.
Sean McShane won over $82,000 on “Jeopardy!” last December. YouTube/CBS Boston
In the video, Jennings told McShane he would not be returning for the wildcard tournament.
“I should have realized what he was doing, but for two seconds in my head, I really thought ‘Wow, this seems mean. That was genuine shock on my face. I did not see that coming.”
What came next was Jennings inviting him back for the Tournament of Champions, which films in February.
Jennings surprised McShane on Tuesday while the contestant was being interviewed on a Boston news channel. YouTube/CBS Boston
“That hope to get called back was always in the back of my mind, but I kept telling myself to just be happy with what I got,” McShane continued to The Post. “It was a welcome surprise. It’s nice to know that everyone feels that I’m worthy to go back and compete.”
Now with another chance, McShane is anticipating a rematch with Ray Lalonde, who eliminated McShane on his way to a 12-game win streak.
McShane films for the tournament in February. YouTube/Jeopardy!
“He was just a machine on the buzzer,” McShane said, adding that fellow competitor Cris Pannullo is “just unbeatable.”
McShane’s cousin Dan previously reached the “Tournament of Champions” in 2013 — raking in more than $62,000 in the process.
But now it’s Sean’s turn, and with another chance, he is anticipating a rematch with Ray Lalonde, who eliminated McShane on his way to a 12-game win streak.
Host Ken Jennings broke the news to McShane in a video message. ABC
McShane also learned another valuable lesson on his last “Jeopardy!” stint: “I have learned it’s best to not make jokes about any part of the country, especially LI [Long Island],” he said of his hometown.
Last December, McShane angered residents when he claimed he was “not missing much” when he skipped Long Island as he rode his bike “the entire length of New York state.”
“As soon as it came out of my mouth I realized, ‘Oops I should not have said that,’” he reflected to The Post. “But I grew up here and have plenty of Long Island bone fides. Hopefully, I’ve been forgiven.”
