It’s been over two months since Ryan Seacrest took over hosting Wheel of Fortune from the legendary Pat Sajak. During that time, Seacrest has struggled to win over fans of Sajak, who hosted the iconic game show for four decades before retiring earlier this year.
On Tuesday night’s episode, Seacrest enraged Wheel of Fortune fans once again by making a mistake that some say Sajak never would have made.
Seacrest’s Mistake
When it came time for the final spin, the contestants took turns trying to solve a puzzle in the “event” category. When it was contestant Oleh’s turn for the second time, he chose to solve the puzzle right away instead of guessing a letter. Had he guessed a letter, he would have increased his total by a whopping $6,000 per letter, which would have won him the game.
“$14,000, just shy of making it to the bonus round,” Seacrest told him afterwards, referring to Oleh’s total.
A contestant named Kathryn made it to the bonus round instead with a total of $14,176, barely ahead of Oleh. She did not end up winning this bonus round, however.
Wheel Of Fortune Fans Fire Back
Wheel of Fortune fans were left livid that Seacrest didn’t encourage Oleh to pick a letter before guessing the puzzle. They claimed that this was a rule that Sajak would always clarify to contestants in the past.
“Pat would have reminded him to guess a letter before solving,” one angered fan commented. Another added, “Could Ryan not say something???”
“Exactly!” a third fan responded. “People do this all the time, or at least try to. Pat was great at always reminding them to call another letter first though.”
“If I’m Oleh, I’m upset at myself for not realizing the situation,” commented a fourth fan. “I’m also angry at Ryan for not doing something that Pat always made a point to do in this exact situation. It’s not the host’s job to point those types of things out but Pat always tried so now we expect it.”
The Sun contacted Wheel of Fortune for comment, but the game show has yet to respond at the time of this writing.
Sajak Retires From Wheel Of Fortune
Fans were understandably devastated back in June when Pat, 77, said goodbye to Wheel of Fortune upon his retirement.
“Well, the time has come to say goodbye,” he said at the end of his final show. “I have a few thanks and acknowledgments before I go, and I want to start with all of you watching out there. It’s been an incredible privilege to be invited into millions of homes night after night, year after year, decade after decade.”
“And I’ve always felt like the privilege came with the responsibility to keep this daily half hour a safe place for family fun,” he continued. “No social issues, no politics, nothing embarrassing I hope, just a game.”
“But gradually it became more than that,” Pat concluded. “A place where kids learned their letters, where people from other countries honed their English skills, where families came together along with friends and neighbors, and entire generations. What an honor to play even a small part in all of that. Thank you for allowing me into your lives.”
In September, Seacrest took over hosting Wheel of Fortune with Sajak’s former co-host Vanna White, who extended her contract for two more seasons. While Seacrest has had some good moments, it’s clear from this latest incident that he may still have a lot of work to do if he wants to fill Sajak’s shoes!
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