“JUST ONE RARE LETTER — AND $65,000 VANISHED RIGHT BEFORE OUR EYES.” Wheel of Fortune viewers are unanimously pointing out why Janel “Coach J” Pilate missed out on the huge prize in the Bonus Round, despite playing almost perfectly all night. The seemingly familiar puzzle contained a deadly trap: the letter Q — a letter almost no one dared choose and rarely appears. As the clock ticked down, all the logical answers were eliminated, and “Quinoa Bowl” remained out of reach. Just one different letter choice, and history could have changed. That moment left viewers feeling both regretful and horrified. And the fan community agrees on one thing: this was one of the most painful misses of the season.
‘Wheel of Fortune’ Fans Agree This Is Why Contestant Lost $65,000
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Wheel of Fortune fans think they know why a contestant lost out on taking home $65,000. The photographer/videographer couldn’t solve the Bonus Round puzzle, which fans agreed was very tricky. But there was one element to it that made it especially tough.. Janel Pilate, from Chicago, Illinois, played against Ricky Ostry, from New Orleans, Louisiana, and Theresa Chapman, from Taylors, South Carolina, on January 22. While Pilate takes photos and videos during the day, she also loves spending time with children and teens in the community, who call her Coach J, at the South Side Help Center.
She solved the first toss-up while Ostry, a member of a ton of different bands, solved the second. After Pilate and Chapman, a retired grandmom, guessed most of the letters in the first puzzle, the turn moved to Ostry, who only guessed two letters and then solved “Soothing Mud Bath” for $6,100. Ostry also solved the “Before & After” puzzle — “Mr. Potato Head Cold” — which gave him a total of $8,050. Pilate took the lead when she solved the prize puzzle — “Chasing Waterfalls” — for a trip to Panama. This gave her a total of $16,250. Chapman finally got on the board with $2,000 when she solved one of the three triple toss-ups. Pilate solved the other two, adding $4,000 to her bank.
Ostry solved the final puzzle, “Rainbow Fruit Tart,” giving him a final total of $15,650. Chapman went home with $2,000. Pilate was the night’s big winner with $20,250. She chose “Food & Drink” for her bonus Round category. During the break, the game show swapped out her name tag for one that said “Coach J.” After being given “R,S,T,L,N, and E,” Pilate chose “D,C,M, and A” to round out her puzzle. It then looked like “_ _ _N_A _ _ _L.” As the clock counted down, she guessed “Granola Bowl,” “Banana Bowl,” and “Fruit Bowl.”
Pilate couldn’t quite guess “Quinoa Bowl.” She would have added $45,000 to her total, which would have given her $65,250. Fans said that this one thing caused her to lose the Bonus Round — no one ever picks “Q” as one of their letters. “‘Quinoa’ is a good word for protecting margins. No one guesses Q and only 1 vowel can be chosen,” one YouTube user said. “It’s rare for a Q to be in the Bonus Round,” another commented. “Always with the Q!” a third added. “The A was a good guess, but the B or the O could be used. Q is a rare letter but not frequently used here,” another wrote. “What a tough puzzle, especially with the letter Q,” one last fan said. Could you solve the puzzle? Let us know in the comments.