Fans express outrage online after a ‘Wheel of Fortune’ player was ‘robbed’ of a $40K prize for a puzzle they believe was ‘clearly solved.’
A “Wheel of Fortune” contestant, Megan, is at the center of online outrage after being denied a $40,000 prize. While, fans believe she solved the puzzle correctly, but the judges ruled her answer wrong.
The cotroversial puzzle
Megan, a high school choir director from California, was tasked with solving a bonus puzzle. The category was “Living Thing,” and the puzzle read: “_ _N_ ‘ _R_ _ _ _.”
After spinning the wheel, Megan made a few guesses, and the board eventually showed: “P_N_’ ‘_RC_ _ D.” With just seconds left, she guessed “Pink Orchid” or possibly “Something Orchid.”
Once the timer ran out, the correct letters appeared, revealing the answer “Pink Orchid.” Megan, frustrated, read the correct answer aloud. Host Pat Sajak apologized, admitting that Megan might have been right.
“You might have been overthinking a type of orchid. I’m sorry that didn’t work out for you,” Sajak says, seemingly realizing Megan could’ve been correct.
Despite this, Megan only walked away with $14,007, far less than the $40,000 prize originally offered.
On social media, many viewer react to the ‘robbery’
On social media, many viewers were furious at what they saw. Many took to social media, claiming Megan was robbed of her rightful prize.
One person said: She did say “pink orchid” first thing out of her mouth….then she said, “pine” and “pony”! I listened very carefully several times, that lady is a winner!!
A second wrote: The very first word she says sounded like pink to me.
While a third commented: She said “pine” and “pony”. She did not say “pink”.
Another added:If she uttered the ansnwer correctly then by all means she clearly won! Don’t cheat on her.
Some else said: The problem was that she was guessing as all guests do. She said Pink Orchid and they didn’t say anything so she kept guessing and her last answer was Pony Orchid.
Addtional controversies stir the pot
This isn’t the first time “Wheel of Fortune” has faced backlash. Fans also criticized the show in January 2024 for a disputed answer during an Express round. Furthermore, the category was ‘Rhyme Time,’ and viewers believed that the answer, ‘Absolutely Positively,’ didn’t rhyme at all. As a result, many expressed their dissatisfaction online
Fans are growing increasingly frustrated with the show’s decisions. Many believe that mistakes like these are becoming too frequent. With viewers calling out the show on social media, it seems tensions are only rising.
As the controversy surrounding Megan’s puzzle answer grows, fans continue to demand that she be awarded the $40,000 prize. Furthermore, whether or not ‘Wheel of Fortune’ will address the issue remains unclear. However, one thing is certain: the show’s loyal viewers are watching closely as they await a response.