Jeopardy! recap for Thur., Dec. 4

 Here are today's contestants:

- Marie D'Avignon, a VP of operations from Durham, North Carolina;

- Andy Luo, a student success coach originally from Johns Creek, Georgia; and

- Ron Lalonde, a medical physicist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Ron is one-day champ with winnings of $15,201.

Jeopardy!

THE 21st CENTURY // WHICH CABINET DEPARTMENT? // THE FILMS OF DIANE KEATON // ON THE MAINE LAND // HAVE A SEAT // THE SONG OF ONE LONELY CONSONANT

DD1 - $800 - ON THE MAINE LAND - John D. Rockefeller Jr. donated land & money to create this park, the first national park established east of the Mississippi (Andy doubled to $4,000.)

Scores at first break: Ron $2,600, Andy $4,000, Marie $2,200.

Scores entering DJ: Ron $5,600, Andy $5,000, Marie $4,400.

Double Jeopardy!

STARTS WITH A GREEK LETTER // HOT DAM! // THE THREAD OF THE STORY // ANNUAL EVENTS // EXTINCT CREATURES // DIFFERENT ARTISTS, SAME HIT SONG

DD2 - $1,600 - THE THREAD OF THE STORY - Her favorite of her own stories was "The Tailor of Gloucester", about some mice with mad needle skills (Andy lost $4,000 from his score of $9,800 vs. $13,600 for Ron.)

DD3 - $1,600 - STARTS WITH A GREEK LETTER - A fire-breather from Greek myth, it's now a word for any mish-mosh of a creation (With a lead of $13K, Ron improved by $4,000 to $22,800.)

Andy missed his chance to take the lead on DD2, then Ron scored on DD3 and held a comfortable runaway into FJ at $24,400 vs. $5,400 for Andy and $5,200 for Marie.

Final Jeopardy!

THE SUPREME COURT IN THE 19TH CENTURY - Citing the "language of the people whether sellers or consumers," in 1893 the S.C. ruled on the botanical designation of this

Everyone gave the same incorrect response on FJ. Ron dropped $4,000 to win with $20,400 for a two-day total of $35,601.

Final scores: Ron $20,400, Andy $399, Marie $201.

Wagering strategy: On FJ, one might think Marie would bet $201 to force Andy to be correct to secure second place. Instead, she went with $4,999, dropping her to $201 and third place when she missed and Andy made the standard cover bet.

Clue selection strategy: Some old-school fans were likely pleased that there was almost no category-hopping in DJ.

Judging the writers: That was a long and not especially helpful FJ category, which suggests the clue would be about a landmark case or the justices. BOTANY AND THE LAW would have been more succinct and on point.

Correct Qs: DD1 - What is Acadia? DD2 - Who was Potter? DD3 - What is chimera? FJ - What is tomato? (Everyone said tobacco.)