Ryan Bilger took home $32,405 and proceeded on to the semifinals
As TV Line notes, the Macungie, Pa. native at one stage defeat his chest in anticipation of nailing a query which was simple for him and told 2017″Tournament of Champions” winner and guest-host, Buzzy Cohen, that he was”going for the kill” when he wagered $6,000 on the Daily Double.
After he obtained backlash on societal media because of his remarks, Bilger issued a long announcement in a series of tweets where he apologized for his behavior and did his best to describe himself.
“So uh hi there. I see there’s a lot of people out there who are displeased with me following Jeopardy tonight,” he began.
“Look, I do it. I had a ton of adrenaline flowing through my veins. I received a daily double on a bit of Pennsylvania history I’ve known since I was a kid. I had been playing better than I ever expected. Yes, I got pretty excited and loud,” he continued. “I get that that’s not exactly what a lot of people want out of Jeopardy. I would take back the remark on the second DD when I could. I was only in the moment and so excited to play because I’d been waiting for it for two years and had plenty of pent-up energy. Not saying it’s a valid excuse, but yeah.”
The contestant went on to reveal he has also independently contacted his two competitors to apologize also.
“I’ve talked with Jason and I’ve talked with Sarah and they’ve been quite clear that they don’t have any issues with me, that we were competitors in a competitive area and that getting excitable is understandable, I have nothing to apologize to them . So that is that with them,” he wrote.
Bilger concluded:”For everyone else, hey, sorry I ruined your Jeopardy watching night. I do it. If you want to make imputations about my personality, then fine, but it’s possible to do it to my head. I understand who I am and this TOC field is an wonderful group of people and I am honored to be part of it.”
Even though the contestant seemed contrite in his Twitter thread, he will return to compete as a semifinalist in the tournament next week and noticed that no amount of backlash can take that away from him.
“See you next week throughout the TV, if you like me or hate me,” he added.
Luckily, there appear to be no hard feelings on behalf of the show, which tweeted that Bilger’s ribbon has been”well said.”
