Chicago Trader Wins 'Jeopardy' Tournament of Champions

Alex Jacob, a Chicago currency trader and onetime professional poker player, won the “Jeopardy” Tournament of Champions on Friday after two weeks of victories among the show’s past champions.

Jacob, 31, was a six-day “Jeopardy” winner in April, earning $149,802.

Jacob came away Friday with $250,000 after beating Washington, D.C. paralegal Matt Jackson and Kerry Greene, of New Hampshire — and he didn’t even need to offer an answer in Final Jeopardy. Jacob finished with $48,300 in the final tournament round, well ahead of his foes.

“The most challenging aspect was probably just dealing mentally with the high stakes and the knowledge that I could win the tournament if I played well. The one thing I had going for me is that I’ve played for a lot of money on national TV before,” Jacob told Variety magazine. “The thing that makes ‘Jeopardy’ different than poker, though, is that there’s always another poker tournament, but you only get one Tournament of Champions.”

Another Chicago-area native who grew up in Highland Park and graduated from Deerfield High School also appeared in the tournament. Michael Bilow, who now lives in California, was a three-day “Jeopardy” champion earlier this year, accumulating $96,000 over the three days.

“Jeopardy” is televised at 3:30 p.m. on ABC 7 Chicago.