Wheel of Fortune contestant Andrew Leachko was inches away from the show’s coveted $1 million prize.
On the May 9 episode of the long-running game show, the Cleveland, Ohio native had the chance to become the first man, and fifth contestant, to win the biggest cash prize offered on Wheel of Fortune.
After facing off against fellow participants Natalya Batenman, a stay-at-home mom and Audrey Cheatham, a former officer turned high school teacher, Leachko excited fans when he landed on the Million Dollar wedge during the AARP Mystery Round.
Per Wheel of Fortune rules, when a contestant lands on the coveted wedge, they must solve the round’s puzzle without landing on a bankrupt wedge. If the player is able to win the game without going bankrupt, the $100,000 bonus wheel envelope will be replaced with a $1 million one.
At the end of his episode-winning run, Leachko went into the bonus round with $30,228 in his pocket. After spinning the bonus wheel, he landed on the “S” wedge and had to solve a final puzzle in the “Event” category.
He was given letters R, S, T, L, N, E before selecting additional letters C, M, D and A. With the puzzle reading, “_ _ R / _ E A R L _ / _ A S _,” Leachko correctly guessed the first two words as “Our yearly,” but got stuck on the last word in the phrase.
“Our yearly fast? Our yearly past? Our yearly … case?” he guessed before the 10-second timer ran out and co-hosts Ryan Seacrest and Vanna White revealed the puzzle to be “Our yearly bash.”
“Close!” Seacrest said before opening the prize envelope to reveal $40,000 written on the card. “And that’s the envelope in my hand.”
The television personality then led Leachko back to the bonus wheel, where he shared that the $1 million prize envelope was just “inches away” from the wedge he landed on.
Over the course of Wheel of Fortune‘s history, only four players have been able to win the $1 million prize. Winners include Michelle Loewenstein (2008), Autumn Erhard (2013), Sarah Manchester (2014), and Sabrina the Teenage Witch alum Melissa Joan Hart on Celebrity Wheel of Fortune (2021).
After Leacheko lost, fans reacted to the moment on social media and expressed their shock at his loss.
“OMG!!! Andrew almost land [sic] on the 1 million dollars envelope on Wheel Of Fortune!!! Now that’s another 1 million dollar heartbreaker,” one user wrote on YouTube, while another added, “Won’t lie, since he didn’t get the puzzle, I’m happy he didn’t land on the million dollar card.”
“One space away from what would have been a million-dollar heartbreaker,” someone else commented.
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Wheel of Fortune airs weeknights (check local listings).
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