I Just Really Need To Talk About The Guy Dominating "Jeopardy!" Right Now

    All I want to do is scream about how smart he is.

    Adam Davis
    by Adam Davis

    BuzzFeed Staff

    I think we can all agree that Jeopardy! is the best trivia game show on television and that Alex Trebek is an international treasure.

    Sony Pictures Television

    There's nothing like hearing those magical words at the start of each episode — "This. Is. Jeopardy!" — to get the mental muscle pumping.

    It has given us countless trivia icons, from Ken Jennings and Julia Collins to Brad Rutter and Alex Trebek's mustache.

    Sony Pictures Television / BuzzFeed

    We miss you, Trebekstache.

    But everything you thought you knew about Jeopardy! has been absolutely obliterated over the past month, thanks to the newest trivia icon to join those esteemed ranks — James Holzhauer. And I am LOSING. MY. MIND.

    Sony Pictures Television

    Holzhauer is a professional sports better (which, cool, I didn't even realize was a thing), so clearly he's not afraid to put a little money on the line.

    You think you know how the game is played? Absolutely not. Holzhauer is rewriting the rules, tearing up the board, and mercilessly tossing would-be challengers to the side as he racks up thousands upon thousands of dollars each episode.

    Sony Pictures Television

    Unlike the "traditional" method of gameplay, in which contestants begin with the easiest clues in each category and work their way down, Holzhauer dives right into the trickiest clues and searches for those lucrative Daily Doubles to pile on the earnings. I was straight-up scandalized when I first saw him at work, but have quickly opened myself up to the Light and the Way that is the Holzhauer method.

    And hot damn, does his strategy work. In 24 games (as of this writing), he's won nearly $1.9 million and holds ALL OF THE TOP TEN slots for biggest single-day winnings.

    Sony Pictures Television

    He won over $131,000 in one day. Many players don't earn that much in a full week of playing, if they even get that far.

    He's also currently in second in terms of total games won (after Ken Jennings' 74) and second in terms of non-tournament winnings (again, only Jennings is ahead of him, with $2,520,700).

    Do you know what has to come together for a player to be this absurdly dominant? Perfect timing with the buzzer and courageous betting, sure. But that wouldn't matter if he didn't also have an absurdly broad swath of knowledge to back it up. AND YEAH. HE'S GOT THAT.

    Sony Pictures Television

    Holzhauer has answered 97% of questions correctly. He credits some of this knowledge to children's books, which he told the Washington Post are "chock-full of infographics, pictures, and all kinds of stuff to keep the reader engaged," even in categories he felt less comfortable with.

    In essence, I feel like a complete idiot watching James Holzhauer, and I couldn't enjoy it more.

    Sony Pictures Television

    King of answering trivia in the form of a question. Long may he reign, tbh.