ACTOR Ike Barenholtz has, against all odds, not only joined Jeopardy!’s 2024 Tournament of Champions but pulled off an upset for the ages on Monday.

The Mindy Project star and the first-ever Celebrity Jeopardy! winner to compete soundly defeated 3-day champ Melissa Klapper and 13-day champ Ray LaLonde.

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Actor Ike Barenholtz – winner of Celebrity Jeopardy! 2023 – won in the Tournament of Champions quarterfinalsCredit: Jeopardy!

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Fans reacted: ‘What just happened’ and ‘This is crazy’Credit: Jeopardy!
As the ToC quarterfinal match kicked off, even host Ken Jennings couldn’t ignore the celebrity elephant in the room.

“What’s this? TV’s Ike Barinholtz? For the first time ever, we’ve invited a Celebrity Jeopardy champion for the ToC,” quipped Jennings.

Indeed, the $250,000 Tournament of Champions is usually reserved for streakholders on the regular game show from the year prior.

But Ike, who emerged victorious in Celebrity Jeopardy! Season 1 with a whopping $72,001, was in top form acing the inaugural clue.

Going into Double Jeopardy!, the legendary Ray who was the tournament’s second seed had $5,400, Melissa $3,800, and Ike $4,800.

In Double Jeopardy, Ike landed on the game’s second Daily Double, and Ken had to remark on his impressive playing.

He said: “Ike you have the lead two great Jeopardy! champs, including a 13-day winner.”

Then came the turning point- Ike opted to “wager it all” as the crowd roared and he aced the clue as Fellini’s 8 1/2 leaping to $15,200.

Melissa found the last Daily Double and wagered $8000, giving her the lead, which she held on to into Final Jeopardy.

Final Jeopardy! saw Melissa at $21,400, Ike at $14,800, and Ray at $13,800 as the crowd went wild over the close scores and the sheer insanity of it all.

Under “POETS OF ANCIENT ROME” the clue read: “Far from Rome, this first century poet wrote, ‘The leader’s anger done, grant me the right to die in my native country.'”

Ray was correct with “Ovid” stoically giving himself the momentary lead with $21,800.

Up next was Ike, and in a cinematic twist, had also correctly written down “Ovid” as Ken yelped in surprise – he added $13,801 to have $28,601.

Finally, Melissa revealed she was incorrect and, as the crowd gasped, Ike was declared the winner with the audience losing it.

The actor, known for his Mad TV stint, now has a shot at claiming the entire tournament prize for himself, a departure from the charity winnings typical of Celebrity Jeopardy!

‘OH MY GOD’

Social media erupted, praising Ike’s remarkable performance against two seasoned champions.

“OH MY GOD WOW CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT,” one Reddit user wrote.

“What just happened… wow,” wrote another.

A third wrote: “I’ll admit I did not expect Ike to win when going from the easier CJ material to the tougher TOC boards, but he held his own. Impressive performance.”

A fourth wrote: “As a huge Ray Lalonde fan, I must say, wow, go Ike Barinholtz! What an amazing game! He singlehandedly redeemed and elevated the Celebrity Jeopardy! name in one fell swoop.

“That was genuinely one of the best Jeopardy! performances I’ve seen, against some of the toughest challenges. Props to Ike.”

Others were simply stunned, writing: “WHAT THE F**K IS HAPPENING. IKE IS IN THE SECOND ROUND. this is crazy.”

And: “Definitely the biggest upset of the tournament, at least to me.”

An additional fan wrote: “He was definitely the best of the field he was in, but yeah… can’t say I was expecting him to make it past the first round against a 13-time winner and a really strong female champion.”

One more penned: “I was down for the Ike sweep when the TOC field was locked in. I didn’t think he’d actually win this match, but hey, I’m not complaining.”

FANS ‘DIDN’T LIKE HIS CHANCES’

The 2024 Tournament of Champions premiered on Friday, February 23, and so far there have been upsets across the board.

Big names like Cris Pannullo, Hannah Wilson, and Juveria Zaheer have all been knocked out upon arrival.

That said, it’s hard to understate how insane it is to see a Celebrity Jeopardy! champ win out.

When the quarterfinal matches were announced, fans doubted Ike’s chances since he was pitted against Ray, who went 12/14 on Final Jeopardy! during his $386,400 run in 2023.

Ray is also one of the game show’s elite – a super-champion – which entails winning 10+ games, of which there have only been 16 in history.

One fan wrote on Reddit at the time: “Ike vs Ray…”

Another wrote: “I was wondering when Ike was announced as being in it how well he’d do; I, uh, don’t like his chances.”

A third joked: “I am hoping Ike Barinholtz plays well and makes it to Final Jeopardy at the very least.”

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Ike beat two seasoned regular contestants, one of whom went on quite a streak in 2023Credit: ABC
That said, Ike seemed to drop a very covert hint in an Instagram video he posted ahead of Monday’s match with a tee shirt that seemed to hint he would win.

The tournament consists of three more quarterfinals, then three semifinals and then a best of seven finals series.

The first champion to win three games receives a $250,000 grand prize and an invite to ABC’s Jeopardy! Masters in May.

Meanwhile, former champ Ken Jennings is now the sole host after Mayim Bialik was fired from the syndicated series in December.

Ken spoke up about her shock departure last month saying he “understood” the decision- “TV show’s don’t have two hosts.”

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Ike went into Final Jeopardy in second place and aced the clue as ‘Ovid’

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He’ll now advance to the semifinals in a twist no one saw coming, and fans are hoping for an ‘Ike sweep’Credit: Jeopardy!

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Even Ken Jennings was gobsmacked when revealing he aced the deciding clue: ‘Woah!’Credit: Jeopardy!