Final Jeopardy: Old Books (1-21-26)

The Final Jeopardy question (1/21/2026) in the category “Old Books” was:

This 1653 work includes information on the care & use of proper equipment including lines, floats & rods

Quarterfinal 3 of the 2026 Tournament of Champions features: 4x champ, Bryce Wargin, a product surveillance coordinator from Kansas City, MO; 2x champ, Cameron Berry, a data analyst and college administrator from Brighton, MA; and 5x champ, Ben Ganger, a data analyst from Goshen, IN.

Round 1 Categories: 19th Century America – Major League Soccer – Now See Here! – Fictional Females – Old Hard Cash – “Ful” Start

Ben found the Jeopardy! round Daily Double in “19th Century America” under the $800 clue on the 3rd pick of the round. He was in the lead with $1,000, $200 more than Bryce in second place. Ben bet $1,000 and guessed quartz. That was WRONG.

Deposits of this mineral were discovered around 1815 in Ticonderoga, New York, leading to a whole new industry show
WHAT ARE GRAPHITE?

Bryce and Cameron were tied in the lead with $2,800. Ben was second with $800. All clues were shown.

Round 2 Categories: Let’s Go to the Science Museum – Island Countries – Playing Some Classical Piano – Documentaries – First of All – How Dare You

Cameron found the first Daily Double in “First of All” under the $1,200 clue on the 11th pick of the round.
He was in the lead with $7,600 now, $5,200 more than Bryce in second place. A reversal (see below) brought Ben’s score up to %???. Cameron bet $4,400 and took a shot at it with Victorinox. That was WRONG.

In 1868 this company named for 2 men made the first Swiss wristwatch, for a countess; men preferred to keep white-rabbiting show
WHAT IS PATEK PHILIPPE?

Ben got the last Daily Double in “How Dare You” under the $1,600 clue on the 15th pick of the round. In second place with $4,800 now, he had $400 less than Cameron’s lead. He bet $4,800 and guessed invalid. That was WRONG.

Though no one knows the origin of this 3-syllable word for “fool”, one theory involves a familiar Latin phrase meaning “not so sound mind” show
WHAT IS NINCOMPOOP?

Cameron finished in the lead with $8,800. Bryce was in second place with $5,200. Ben was last with $2,000. All clues were shown.

NONE of the contestants got Final Jeopardy! right.

WHAT IS “THE COMPLEAT ANGLER”?

English author Izaak Walton published “The Compleat Angler” in 1653, popularizing fishing as a leisurely pursuit as opposed to work or a sport. The book became so popular, it has been reprinted more times than you can shake a fishing pole at, as this video explains.

Did you know? Although “compleat” was originally ye olde spelling of “complete”, it took on a different definition thanks to Izaak Walton.

Ben tried “The Art of Fishing”. He bet nothing so his score remained $2,000.

Bruce went with a simpler “On Fishing”. He lost $4,999 and finished with $201.

Cameron thought “The Ideal Fisherman” might work. He lost his $1,601 bet but won the game with the remaining $7,199. Cameron has now gone from 1 win in regular play to 1 win in Champions Wildcard to a quarterfinal win in the ToC. Now, that really is wild!

Reversal: PLAYING SOME CLASSICAL PIANO ($1200) This Canadian set a new standard for Bach piano playing with 2 versions of the “Goldberg Variations”, in the 1950s & ’80s – Ken was looking for a Glenn Gould response so he rejected “Gold” from Ben and Cameron got it. The judges found out that Glenn’s last name was originally Gold, so they gave Ben a thumbs up and $2,400.

A triple stumper from each round:

OLD HARD CASH ($1000) A valuable sestertius coin from 64 A.D. bears images of Emperor Nero & this Roman seaport completed during his reign

FIRST OF ALL ($2000) He was living in Bruges in the 1470s when he produced the first book printed in English

More clues on Page 2

2 years ago: NONE of the players got this FJ in “1980s MOVIE CHARACTERS”