‘Wheel of Fortune’ Fans Criticize Contestant’s Puzzle Flub
March 19, 2025
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Fans of Wheel of Fortune have been known to have their gripes with the show here and there, but this time, they’re coming after a contestant.
Ryan Halsey appeared on the Monday, March 17 episode of the beloved game show’s 42nd season, where he competed and eventually became the big winner of the night. Halsey — who is a California native — earned a total of $39,450 and an all-expenses-paid trip to Costa Rica.
As the episode’s winner, Halsey qualified to play the Bonus Round, where he picked the “Phrase” category. The contestant’s puzzle read “_ O_L _E EL_GHTE,” after he chose “G, F, H, and O,” and the game show provided the “R, S, T, L, N, and E.”
Ryan Seacrest attends the “American Idol” Season 22 Top 10 Event at The Aster in Los Angeles, California. Ryan Seacrest attends the “American Idol” Season 22 Top 10 Event at The Aster in Los Angeles, California. Monica Schipper/Getty Images
“I am delighted,” he guessed before the timer ran out, and host Ryan Seacrest revealed the answer: “I would be delighted.” The 50-year-old host of the game show then revealed that, despite taking home almost $40,000 and a free trip, Halsey had missed out on a brand-new Ford Bronco as a result of his Bonus Round mistake.
A number of Wheel fans expressed their response to the episode winner’s performance during the show and the Bonus Round in the comment section of a clip of the game show on YouTube.
“How TF did he not get that Bonus Round!?” asked one viewer before they added, “He was brilliant all night and then…bam!”
A second viewer wrote, “Ouch! And I literally got that myself! Oh well, there’s always tomorrow,” while a third noted, “I got this pretty easily — but Ryan still did a great job.”
Fans of the show most recently came after Seacrest after he seemingly laughed at a contestant who lost $100,000 during an episode earlier this month. A number of viewers even had a discussion about the host’s reaction in a post about the episode.
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