Dallas-Fort Worth can lay claim to a rising Jeopardy! champion: Ashley Mungiguerra Chan, a resident of Lewisville, is now on a four-day winning streak after besting her competition on Tuesday, December 17.
Chan, who works in public relations, began her run-up to champion status on December 12, taking down the previous three-day champion with ease, finishing with a runaway total of $15,600.
Since then, she has shown to have a broad range of knowledge, as well as the buzzer skills, to keep her on top.
Chan is a graduate of Hofstra University in 2015 and a publicist at Dala Communications in Dallas. In an interview with her alma mater, she shared some of the strategies that have helped her stay on top now for four days in a row.
“I told a lot of people before I went on Jeopardy!, ‘Oh, I feel like I have a leg up on other contestants because I’ve been on TV before and hosted programs,'” she said. “I also did debate in high school. So, being on stage in front of people didn’t make me nervous.”
“Having experience with hands-on news work was really helpful for me because I was able to focus on gameplay and not worry if my mic was messing up, if I was looking in the wrong direction, or if my outfit was OK,” she said.
She applied to be on the show more than once, and was eventually accepted by the show's producers in 2024. Her episodes were filmed in October.
She brushed up by listening to the show's podcasts and said she was grateful they got to rehearse the process of hitting the buzzer, since that was one of the most rattling aspects of the show. Hit it too soon, and you're temporarily frozen out.
"It is so much more difficult than it looks on TV," she said.
Knowing how much to risk during Final Jeopardy was also a key strategy that helped her in her second game on December 13, when a smart wager allowed her to retain her title despite not knowing the answer.
The game on December 17 was her closest yet, with all three contestants having amassed more than $10,000 heading into Final Jeopardy, a rare scenario for the game.
The category was "Fictional Characters." The clue: "Dressed in white in her first scene, this play character says her name means 'white woods.'"
Chan's correct response of "Who is Blanche DuBois?," along with a little lucky wagering, enabled her to win by a mere $300. Her four-day total winnings now stand at $67,400.
Root for her on December 18 on CBS TV at 6 pm, when she'll compete once again. Can she win a fifth time? Whether she does or not, with four wins under her belt, Chan is likely to be invited back for Jeopardy's annual Tournament of Champions, set to air in January 2026.
