Ron LaLonde extends his Jeopardy! streak with another runaway win

Jeopardy! aired a new episode on December 5, 2025, with returning champion Ron LaLonde seeking a third win. LaLonde, a medical physicist from Pittsburgh, started the game with a two-day total of $35,601.

His challengers were Margaret Dunlap from Burbank and Youssef Shareef from Houston. At the start of the show, host Ken Jennings said, “It was a runaway win yesterday for champion Ron LaLonde,” and noted that LaLonde was moving closer to the win record held by his twin brother,

Ray. LaLonde found the first Daily Double on the opening clue but missed it, which placed him at a negative $1,000.

Shareef moved into the lead as he completed the category. LaLonde recovered his score during the round and entered the first break in second place.

The game later included a ruling change when judges accepted Dunlap’s earlier response after reviewing it. This added money to her score and created a shift in the standings, though it did not change the final result.

By the end of the show, LaLonde had secured a runaway position before Final Jeopardy and closed the day with a three-day total of $52,501.

Game highlights and scoring shifts in Jeopardy!
 

The first round of Jeopardy! began with LaLonde selecting the Daily Double immediately, but his incorrect response sent him below zero.

Shareef then answered several clues and finished the round with the lead at $4,800. Jennings commented,

“Ron is just dialed in on the buzzer,” but Shareef remained ahead at that stage.

Dunlap held $3,000, and LaLonde ended with $4,000. In Double Jeopardy, LaLonde found the next Daily Double early.

He wagered his full $3,600 and correctly defined “standard temperature and pressure,” which moved him into the lead.

Shareef tied the score after answering a Canada-related clue, and LaLonde pulled ahead again by responding to most of the clues in the “Classic Artists’ B-Side” category.

A scoring discussion then took place when Dunlap’s answer “idyll” on a clue about a type of poem was reconsidered. Judges later accepted the response as a synonym, adding $3,200 to her score.

One viewer wrote, “If the writers had anticipated ‘idyll,’ Margaret probably would’ve won the game,” and also noted that the ruling “affected the outcome of the play order.”

Before the final Daily Double appeared, players were close enough in score that the adjustment had potential to change control of the board, but LaLonde located the final Daily Double and maintained his lead through the end of the round.

Final round and results in Jeopardy!

LaLonde entered Final Jeopardy with $17,200, which gave him a runaway position. Shareef held $8,400, and Dunlap had $7,800. The final clue in the category “History” referred to a storm in the 1960s that removed a section of a sandstone formation that had been in the news during the 1920s.

Dunlap responded with “What is Teapot Dome?” and was correct. She added $601 for a total of $8,401. Shareef wrote “What is idk?” and lost all his money after wagering $8,400.

LaLonde entered a response of “What is ???” on his Final Jeopardy card, showing that he did not have a guess.

He wagered $300, which lowered his score slightly but did not affect the outcome, leaving him with $16,900.

Jennings closed the game by saying, “Ron has his third win,” confirming that LaLonde would return the following week. His total after three days reached $52,501.

The episode also highlighted the scoring review earlier in the game, but the final standings remained unchanged by the adjustment.

LaLonde’s position as champion continued, and viewers will see whether he can extend his run when the show returns on Monday.

The episode ended with LaLonde still ahead of both challengers on the leaderboard and holding the champion’s podium for another game.
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