JEOPARDY! Masters champ Victoria Groce has revealed the moment she knew she'd win the game after fearing her chances of taking home the Trebek Trophy were slim. Last Wednesday, Victoria defeated Masters Season 1 champ James Holzhauer and finalist Yogesh Raut after two close-fought games during the Jeopardy! Masters Season 2 finale . During the most recent episode of the Inside Jeopardy! podcast, Victoria opened up to hosts Sarah Whitcomb and Michael Davies about her big win.
When speaking about participating in Season 2 of the trivia competition, going up against vets like Mattea Roach and Matt Amadio , Victoria revealed she went in with tempered expectations. "As far as expectations, they were pretty low. I think of this almost more life golf than like chess, in the sense that you have pretty minimal control over what your opponents do," she admitted.
Victoria explained, "I can try to buzz well. I can try to be careful about not going in on stuff I didn't know. I could try to be strategically aggressive and make good wagers but ultimately, I can't control if I'm getting beaten on the buzzer very much.
"I can't control if my opponents hit a daily double and make a smart wager on it. These are things that I have limited control over. So, in terms of having expectations, they were slim to none.
" When Sarah questioned how Victoria was able to win Jeopardy! Masters after not participating in the game show over "nearly twenty years," Victoria confessed that she "wasn't in Jeopardy.