James Holzhauer Sparks Epic Jeopardy Rivalry Reunion with Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter

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As a movie buff excitedly flipping through the 2025 TV lineup, I was thrilled to find “Jeopardy! Masters” on the schedule. It’s been a while since I’ve seen Brad Rutter, the most successful player in “Jeopardy!” history, grace the Alex Trebek Stage. Despite declining several opportunities to participate over the past couple of years, this was his first appearance since Ken Jennings bested him in the 2020 GOAT Tournament. It seems we have James Holzhauer, another GOAT contender, to thank for reuniting these long-time rivals.

From last year’s Masters, finalists Victoria Groce, Yogesh Raut, and James Holzhauer were chosen as part of the nine competitors for the third season of the prestigious tournament airing on ABC (with streaming access through a Hulu subscription). Unfortunately, James Holzhauer was absent from the lineup. As Michael Davies, the show’s executive producer, shared in a blog post detailing the behind-the-scenes process:

James Holzhauer, the 2023 Jeopardy! Masters champion and a top three finisher from last year, respectfully declined our invitation to join. Instead, he suggested we contact his long-time rival, Brad Rutter – the individual with the highest winnings on Jeopardy! among both humans and computers.

It turns out it was James Holzhauer who suggested Brad Rutter emerge from his five-year break, and I’m really thankful that he did. (In an ideal scenario, we would have had them both, given their past rivalry on Jeopardy!, but let’s move on from that.)

As a follower, I’ve had the pleasure of witnessing some exciting matchups between Jeopardy! legends Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter. They squared off multiple times, such as when Rutter outperformed the potential host in the 2005 Ultimate Tournament of Champions. They also faced off against IBM’s Watson in 2011, with neither coming out on top. In 2014’s Battle of the Decades, it was once again Rutter who triumphed over Jennings. Lastly, in the Jeopardy! All-Star Games of 2019, Team Brad emerged victorious over Team Ken. Michael Davies also mentioned…

Reflect on the light-hearted interaction between Brad and Ken during their initial introductions, reminiscent of ‘I know you’re thrilled to see me, Ken.’ Consider all the matches, years, and decades that culminated in this single moment. In essence, a powerful supercomputer was part of its creation as well.

Over the years, it’s not surprising that Ken Jennings has avoided a GOAT rematch with Brad Rutter, considering how often Rutter has triumphed. In fact, it wasn’t until the Greatest of All Time Tournament in 2020 that Jennings managed to exact his revenge on his wealthier but less-well-known rival. He won the first game, making history as the first human to defeat Rutter. James Holzhauer then claimed Game 2, followed by Jennings securing the best-of-3 series with victories in Games 3 and 4.

I was thrilled to witness their reunion, and it’s clear that Brad Rutter is eager to rekindle their friendly competition. He playfully teased Ken Jennings about the 2020 tournament and mentioned his intention to poke fun at the host during the event.

Despite Brad Rutter’s five-year absence from competition, Michael Davies didn’t go easy on him during his comeback. Instead, Rutter found himself squared off against Victoria Groce, last year’s Masters champion (wearing a green jacket), and Yogesh Raut, the runner-up. Struggling with the buzzer, as expected, Brad ended up in third place without any match points.

I’m thrilled to see him return to the Alex Trebek Stage, and it’s a joy to be reunited with Ken Jennings. While I can’t help but miss James Holzhauer, I’ll settle for being thankful that the game show antagonist is now utilizing his abilities (and staying away) for a good cause this time.

Jeopardy! Masters continues at 9 p.m. ET Wednesdays on ABC and streaming the next day on Hulu.

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2025-05-05 23:09