'Wheel of Fortune' contestant dubbed 'best ever' after his instant $67,000 winning move
Pat Sajak was left speechless.
Imagine winning that much money in milliseconds.
Over its decades-long syndication run, “Wheel of Fortune” has given audiences their fair share of epic wins (not to mention royally embarrassing misses). But regardless, seeing someone effortlessly wordsmith their way into winning big money never gets old.
And this big win came in a matter of milliseconds.
Alex Harrell, a father from Stafford, Virginia, who has served over nine years in the Marine Corps as an Osprey pilot, had already dominated the episode—racking up $27,105, a cruise and a trip to Aruba, per TV Insider.This brought the young Marine to the Bonus round, where he selected the “Food and Drink” category and the letters “H, G, P and O.”
Up on the two-word puzzle screen, “T _ P _ O _ _ / P _ _ _ _ N G” appeared.
Before Pat Sajak is even able to say “if you need more time,” Harrell had his answer.
“Tapioca Pudding.”
Shaking his head in astonishment, Sajak opened the envelope to reveal Harrel won an additional $40,000, which gave him an overall total of $67,150, plus his trips.
“Way to go, Alex. Best contestant ever tonight!” wrote one viewer on YouTube.
Another added, “intense bonus round, he rocked it.”
Folks on X shared a similar sentiment.
One person wrote, “WOW!! Alex did Excellent!!! That’s the way we like it…and thank you for your service.”
Another seconded, “I'm assuming he's gonna go back to the Hyatt and roll around in the bed with all that dough.”
Now one has to wonder…does Harrell have a knack for words? Or is he just that big a fan of pudding? Either way, it paid off.
Watch his iconic win below: