Current:Home > InvestDid 'Wheel of Fortune' player get cheated out of $40,000? Contestant reveals what she said -WealthRise Academy
Did 'Wheel of Fortune' player get cheated out of $40,000? Contestant reveals what she said
View
Date:2025-04-24 21:46:46
She'd like to solve the mystery.
Some "Wheel of Fortune" fans became convinced this week that a player was cheated out of $40,000 after being ruled incorrect despite giving the right answer during the bonus round. Now, the contestant herself has weighed in.
The category in the bonus round was "living thing," but contestant Megan Carvale didn't quite come up with the answer, "pink orchid," in time. Or did she?
In what quickly became the game show equivalent of "the dress" debate, some viewers argued that Carvale did say "pink orchid" as her first guess, yet she was not ruled correct. She proceeded to wrongly guess "pony orchid" just before time ran out. "You might have been overthinking thinking of a type of orchid," host Pat Sajak suggested. Had she given the right answer, Carvale would have won $40,000.
"I'm sorry, did she NOT say Pink Orchid the first time? Or am I tripping," one user on X, formerly Twitter, asked.
"There is no question, she absolutely said 'pink orchid,'" another fan wrote. "Please give this girl her winnings!"
Others argued that Carvale said "something orchid," not "pink orchid." So Carvale appeared Thursday on "Good Morning America" to put the debate to rest and reveal what she really said.
"You know, I wish I said pink, because I would have been $40,000 richer," she said. "But I said 'something.'"
This came as a surprise to "Good Morning America" hosts Michael Strahan and Robin Roberts, both of whom thought Carvale said pink after watching the clip.
Pat Sajakstunned by 'Wheel of Fortune' contestant's retirement poem: 'I'm leaving?'
The debate could have something to do with the volume at which fans watched the original segment. Prior to Carvale's explanation, when the clip was uploaded to YouTube, many commenters agreed she said "something."
"On low volume it sounds like pink orchid but on high volume it's definitely 'something orchid,'" one YouTube comment said, while others pointed out that Carvale likely would have objected in the moment had she given the right answer.
New 'Wheel of Fortune' hostRyan Seacrest worries about matching Pat Sajak's quickness
Carvale admitted on "GMA" she was "so bummed" to have not won the bonus round, and the viral debate over her answer forced her to relive the loss. But despite not taking home the $40,000 bonus prize, Carvale still won $14,007 and a trip to Aruba on the show, and she found another way to see the bright side of the situation.
"You know what, at least it's positive attention," she told "GMA." "It could have been people making fun of me that I didn't get it right."
veryGood! (5)
Related
- Most popular books of the week: See what topped USA TODAY's bestselling books list
- 15-year-old goes missing while on vacation in Galveston, Texas; Amber Alert issued
- Senate conservatives press for full Mayorkas impeachment trial
- Man faces potential deportation after sentencing in $300,000 Home Depot theft scheme, DOJ says
- Trump invites nearly all federal workers to quit now, get paid through September
- A man tried to open an emergency exit on an American Airlines flight. Other passengers subdued him
- Mega Millions winning numbers for Tuesday's drawing as jackpot passes $500 million
- Robots and happy workers: Productivity surge helps explain US economy’s surprising resilience
- Small twin
- Harvard condemns student and faculty groups for posting antisemitic cartoon
Ranking
- The city of Chicago is ordered to pay nearly $80M for a police chase that killed a 10
- RHOBH Reunion Rocked By Terrifying Medical Emergency in Dramatic Trailer
- College student who shares flight information for Taylor Swift's jet responds to her lawyers' cease-and-desist: Look What You Made Me Do
- Man faces potential deportation after sentencing in $300,000 Home Depot theft scheme, DOJ says
- Taylor Swift makes surprise visit to Kansas City children’s hospital
- Seattle police officer who struck and killed graduate student from India won’t face felony charges
- Look Back on the Way Barbra Streisand Was—And How Far She's Come Over the Years
- Should Caitlin Clark stay at Iowa or go to WNBA? How about the Olympics? It's complicated
Recommendation
Who's hosting 'Saturday Night Live' tonight? Musical guest, how to watch Dec. 14 episode
Natalie Portman Briefly Addresses Benjamin Millepied Affair Speculation
Target strikes deal with Diane von Furstenberg. Here's how much her clothes will cost.
Green Bay schools release tape of first Black superintendent’s comments that preceded resignation
Senate begins final push to expand Social Security benefits for millions of people
Alex Morgan returns to USWNT after Mia Fishel injury, and could play in Gold Cup opener
Alabama seeks to carry out second execution using controversial nitrogen gas method
FuboTV files lawsuit over ESPN, Fox, Hulu, Warner Bros. Discovery sports-streaming venture