Wheel of Fortune made history this week, with two consecutive contestants winning the $100,000 grand prize in the Bonus Round.
Monday night's installment of the ABC show saw contestant Lisa Kramer clinch the coveted top prize, taking home a grand total of $116,700 in winnings. And viewers had barely recovered from that win before another contestant repeated the feat on Tuesday.
With the big jackpot win being far from an everyday occurrence, host Pat Sajak made a number of references to Kramer's achievement during Tuesday's episode.
"On yesterday's show, we gave $100,000 in the Bonus Round," Sajak said, per Yahoo! Entertainment. "I checked the rules. It can happen two days in a row. Nothing says you can't do that."
And Baer proved that correct, when he made history with another huge haul, taking home a grand total of $126,550 in the process.
"It's never happened!" Sajak said as confetti rained down on the Los Angeles studio. "And wouldn't you know it, I just sold all my confetti stock...There's always something new around here, isn't there? That's incredible."
For the round, Baer was given the customary letters—R, S, T, L, N and E—ahead of adding his own letters—C, D, P and I—and guessing the answer, which fell under the category "event."
"This looks tough," said Sajak ahead of the 10-second countdown for Baer to find and share the answer.
Almost as soon as the clock started, Baer correctly guessed: "A quick flight."
"Well, even after almost 40 years, new things happen around here," an astonished Sajak said as co-host Vanna White applauded the win.
Sajak then congratulated Baer, before asking the elated contestant if he was going to help them clean up the confetti-filled studio.
A clip of the moment was shared on Wheel of Fortune's verified Twitter account, alongside the caption: "Whoa, did that just happen?! A Wheel of Fortune first! A second $100,000 winner in a row! 2 NIGHTS 2 HUGE WINS!"
In an interview with his daughter Maggie Sajak, who serves as the show's social correspondent, Pat Sajak admitted that he was "stunned" by the wins.
"We're heading into our 40th season in the fall, and yet we still see things we never saw before on the show," said the veteran broadcaster.
So I guess lightning CAN strike twice⚡️⚡️ @WheelofFortune @PatOnWheel pic.twitter.com/2DWQOAm4tx
— Maggie Sajak (@MaggieSajak) February 9, 2022
While a number of fans took to Twitter to celebrate the moment, former Wheel of Fortune champ Robert Santoli broke down the odds on two back-to-back winners.
"As of tonight, @WheelofFortune has offered the $100,000 for 3,944 episodes," Santoli wrote. "The odds of hitting it twice in a row (win or lose): 1 in 576, or ~0.17%. It has happened four times so far, which is actually below pace (3944/576≈6.85). #Wheel100K Odds of 3 in a row: 1 in 13,824."
Wheel of Fortune hit headlines in December, when contestant Charlene Rubush missed out on winning a brand-new Audi—despite guessing correctly—because she paused in the middle of her answer.
Audi USA last month gifted Rubush a $40,000 Audi Q3 to make up for the controversial loss, which had sparked outrage among fans.
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