Biggest winner this week: Christian Galvin ($53,754) (September 23)
Previous time Monday's Pricing Games were played on a season premiere:
Switch?: Season 34 (also for cars)
Plinko: Season 42
That's Too Much!: Season 38
Coming or Going: First time ever
Hole in One: Season 9
Balance Game: First time ever
Monday's episode featured the first three-car day since December 7, 2012 (Drew's 1000th episode). (This excluded the Sweet 16 episode on June 26, 2015 where all six games were played for cars.)
Switch? was played for two cars for the third time in daytime history. (It also happened on September 24, 2001 and September 19, 2005). Unfortunately, only the September 19, 2005 playing was won.
Based on the available information, Hole in One was played for the 700th time in daytime history, becoming the 26th Pricing Game to reach this milestone.
That's Too Much! and Bonkers were both won for the 100th time in daytime history. Bonkers now has an overall record of 100-122, compared to 100-314 for That's Too Much!
The last possible choice was right in Push Over for the first time since May 18, 2015 and for only the fourth time since the start of Season 41.
The $46,323 Showcase, won by Maryletecia, was the most expensive Showcase won since January 19 of last season ($54,266).
Joshua's 11 second win Clock Game was the best result in this game since a 4 second win on the November 9, 2010 episode.
Random stat: Jerome became the 19th contestant in daytime history to win the car in Pass in Buck on their very first pick. Overall, 19 out of the 57 Pass the Buck wins resulted from contestants picking the car on their first pick.
Comments for the Week of September 26-30
Biggest winner this week: Alexa Landreaux ($46,217)
So far this season, 40% (4/10) of contestants called to Contestant Row's at the start of the sixth one bid managed to win their way up stage. This start to the season is well ahead of the success rate of 17% in the previous 16 seasons for the ninth contestant.
After playing 47 Pricing Games in a row for the first time, Pick-a-Number became the first Pricing Game to be played twice this season. By comparison, in the previous five seasons, the first Pricing Game played twice was:
Season 40: 1 Wrong Price (32nd Pricing Game)
Season 41: Freeze Frame (34th Pricing Game)
Season 42: Do the Math (33rd Pricing Game)
Season 43: Clock Game (43rd Pricing Game)
Season 44: Squeeze Play (38th Pricing Game)
Card #30 was selected in Spelling Bee for the first time since May 14, 2013. Prior to this week, it was the card that had gone the second longest without being chosen. (Behind only card #14 - November 8, 2011)
Since the start of Season 32, 17 contestants (including this week) have won all three rolls in Let 'em Roll and have rolled exactly four cars with their first roll. Surprisingly, despite 75% odds of rolling the fifth car in one of their final two rolls, only 9 out of these 17 contestant went on to win the car.
For only the third time since Season 32, a contestant picked the keys for both non-car prizes in Master Key. It also happened on October 15, 2003 and July 2, 2008.
Sharlene won $29,405 in Gas Money, which was the biggest win in a Pricing Game since the Golden Road win on February 19, 2016.
Hole #44 (Row 5, Column 4) was chosen in Punch a Bunch for the first time since April 25, 2011. (While it contained $100 this time, it held a $5,000 slip in that episode.) Prior to this week, that hole (behind #30) had gone the second longest without being selected.
Comments for the Week of October 3-7
Biggest winner this week: James Taylor ($41,712) (October 4)
A small prize game has been played 14 times so far this season. Ten of those playings belong to Cliff Hangers and the four small prize cash games. That means 5 out of 14 small prize games have not yet been played this season (Bonus Game, Five Price Tags, Rat Race, Shell Game, Switcheroo).
On the flip side, 13 out of the 15 grocery product games have been played at least once this season. Grand Game is the only game that has been played more than once and Hi Lo and Pay the Rent are the only games that have not yet been played.
Heather won Monday's second Showcase Showcase with a score of 40 cents. That's the lowest winning score for a contestant spinning first since a 30 cent win on February 10, 2015.
At least one car had been won in the first twelve episodes of this season. Unfortunately, Wednesday's episode ended that streak. Ultimately, only three cars were won this week (in Cliff Hangers, Dice Game and Friday's Showcase) compared to 8 cars in week 1 and 6 cars in week 2.
On Wednesday, Drew commented that it was rare for a contestant to go over in the Showcase Showdown after spinning a dime on their first spin. Previous time it's happened: March 3, 2016 (forced to spin again) or January 27, 2016. Previous time a contestant went over after spinning a nickel: November 9, 2015 (forced to spin again) or September 22, 2015.
The $3,099 Kawasaki off-road vehicle was the first one bid to exceed $3,000 this season. Last season had 13 $3,000+ one bids - all of them were offered during Big Money Week.
In Plinko, the center slot was hit for the first time this season on the seventh Plinko chip that was dropped. Last season, it took 37 drops (and until December 11) before someone hit the $10,000 slot.
Gas Money was lost for the 100th time in daytime history. (The game has an overall record of 11-100.) This total includes 16 bailouts and 84 instances where nothing was won.
In Check-Out, $21.31 was the largest product total since February 27, 2014 ($21.75). The $9.95 MidNite sleep tablets was also the most expensive grocery product used since June 11, 2013 ($10.74 Nicorette gum).
Check-Out was also played second for the first time since January 7, 2015 (played for a car) and September 25, 2009 (played for a barbecue).
Since Season 29, Cliff Hangers has a record of 6-6 when played for a car, while Check-Out has a record of 4-15.
Comments for the Week of October 10-14
Biggest winners this week: Catherine Behm ($66,115) and Sue Anne Leonard ($45,512) (October 13)
Six car games were won this week (Lucky $even, Dice Game, Five Price Tags, Card Game, 3 Strikes, Money Game), which is the best result since the week of May 4-8 (week 32) in Season 43. (We last had a week with seven car wins in Season 41.)
Marnyce became the second contestant in daytime history to hit the center slot in Plinko when it offered something other than $5,000 and $10,000. (Plinko has offered a "special value" 13 times - 5 times during Publishers Clearing House Week in Season 40, 3 times during the Plinko 30th anniversary special in Season 42, 4 times in Big Money Week episodes and this week's episode). The only other time the center slot was hit was April 9, 2012 when it was worth $20,000.
Grocery Game was won for the first time since May 27, 2015, which snapped a 10 game losing streak. Of course, Jeffrey's total ($21.95) would have lost under the old rules, so the increased range of $20-$22 is already paying off.
Grocery Game's win means 2 for the Price of 1 is now the game that has gone the longest without a win or partial win (January 11, 2016).
The $29,381 Dodge Charger was the most expensive car offered in One Away since October 16, 2014 ($79,320 Tesla Model S) and December 24, 2008 ($36,950 Audi TT).
Christine became the fifth contestant since Season 32 to win Dice Game by default (rolling only 1s, 6s or the exact numbers). The previous time it happened was February 7, 2014. Christine was also the fifth contestant since Season 30 to roll the right number three times. The previous occurrence was October 28, 2015.
Last season, Switch? went 23-4 and didn't pick up its second loss until March 1. This season, after just 4 weeks, Switch? has already been lost twice and has a much less impressive record of 1-2.
Thursday's playing of Squeeze Play snapped a streak of 9 straight playings where removing the "0" was the correct choice.
In Season 44, removing the 0 was right in all seven instances where there was a 0 in the price. In Season 43, it was right only once in the five instances.
With 16 draws, Catherine set the record for the most draws in 3 Strikes since at least Season 29. The previous high was 14 draws, occurring most recently on April 2, 2004.
The $63,415 Cadillac CT6 is the most expensive car ever won in 3 Strikes and is the third most expensive car ever offered (behind two six-digit Dream Car Week cars).
3517 was the second high number ever set by a contestant in Magic #. The current record is 3564 from the March 24, 2010 episode.
Thanks to the big win in 3 Strikes, Thursday 's total winnings of $145,834 is the most won since February 19, 2016 (the Golden Road win). It was also the first episode this season to have three cars won.
Conversely, Friday's total winnings of $49,473 is the least won so far this season.
It has now been three straight times (dating back to last season) where a small prize game was not played on an episode featuring Pocket ¢hange.
Robin's final score of 40 cents in Pocket &chent;hange is the least pocket change ever accumulated in this game. (However, there have been some playings where the value of all of the cards was not revealed). The previous low was 45 cents, set four times.
Comments for the Week of October 17-21
Biggest winner this week: Brian Reed ($43,857) (October 20)
Manfred was $132 away from the winning range in Card Game. That is the closest loss in this game since a $64 loss on February 3, 2015.
Monday's three way $1.00 spin-off was the first three-way spin-off since April 1, 2015 and the first three-way $1.00 spin-off since October 30, 2003, June 14, 2002 and December 5, 2001. (Out of these 12 spinners, 2 managed to win additional money - Kristopher by spinning 15 cents on June 14, 2002 and Wendy by spinning a dollar on October 30, 2003.)
With this week's loss, Side By Side has started the season at 1-2 and appears to be well off the pace to match last year's record of 19-5. However, Side By Side also had a bad start to Season 44 - it went 3-2 before rattling off nine straight wins. So all hope is not lost yet.
Out of the $50,621 in cash and prizes that were won on Monday's episode, 84.4% ($42,702) was won by Manfred. That is the highest percentage of winnings won by a single contestant so far this season.
How often the six games played on Monday have been played on an episode where all six games were fully lost:
1 Right Price: Fifth time in the past 10 winless shows (June 16, 2014, October 15, 2014, October 21, 2014, January 13, 2016, October 17, 2016).
Card Game: First time since at least Season 32.
Grocery Game: Sixth time since the start of Season 37.
Side By Side: First time since at least Season 32.
Pathfinder: Seventh time since the start of Season 37.
Check Game: First time since at least Season 32.
Since the start of Season 32, 15 contestants have gotten exactly three prizes right on their first try in Switcheroo:
4 contestants did not make any changes on their second try:
3 had the car right
1 did not have the car right
11 contestants made changes on their second try:
3 did not change the car price:
2 had the car right
1 did not have the car right
8 changed the car price:
3 had the car right on their first try and, therefore, changed it to the incorrect price.
5 did not have the car right on their first try:
2 changed it to the right car price
3 changed it to another incorrect price
The $26,290 bathroom is the second most expensive prize ever offered in Shell Game (including cars), behind only the $50,000 in cash that was offered during last season's Big Money Week.
This was the third time in Rat Race's history where a contestant went over the $1 range for the grocery product by a measly penny. Along with this week, it also happened on March 14, 2011 and October 9, 2013.
For the fifth time since Season 32, all four numbers were wrong in Temptation. (Three out of those five contestants decided to take the gifts.) Prior to this week, the previous time it happened was November 25 of last season.
The final five Pricing Games to be played at least once this season will be: Bonus Game, Golden Road, Hi Lo, 10 Chances, 2 for the Price of 1. The final five in previous seasons were:
Season 44: Golden Road, Hi Lo, Pick-a-Pair, Switcheroo, Triple Play
Season 43: Check Game, Magic #, Rat Race, 3 Strikes, Triple Play
Season 42: Pay the Rent, Shell Game, Step Up, Temptation, 3 Strikes
Season 41: Balance Game, 'em Roll, Pick-a-Number, Rat Race, Triple Play
Season 40: Clock Game, Golden Road, Shell Game, Step Up, Triple Play
Comments for the Week of October 24-28
Biggest winners this week:
Christen Freeman ($213,876) (October 28) - Biggest winner in daytime history
Raymond Keefe ($105,014) (October 24) - 12th biggest winner in daytime history
Joshua Henderson ($57,926) (October 25)
Konstantino ($53,459) (October 24)
Currently, 7 out of the top 14 biggest winners in daytime history were contestants called during Big Money Week. (The top 14 also includes 2 Golden Road winners, 2 winners during Dream Car Week, a winner on the Season 35 premiere, a winner on Bob's final episode and a winner during a "Best of" special.)
Andre's $14,000 bid in Monday's fourth one bid is the highest bid made by a contestant since at least the start of Season 40.
Bullseye was played sixth for the first time since May 22, 2015.
On Tuesday, only $396 separated the value of both Showcases. In the past three seasons, only the March 14, 2016 episode ($56) and the June 25, 2014 episode ($335) had closer differences.
Tuesday's episode was the first time all three Pricing Games played in the first half of an episode were won this season. Conversely, we have already had four perfect second halfs this season.
Based on the available information, Bargain Game was played for the 1100th time in daytime history this week. Bargain Game is the 10th Pricing Game to reach this milestone.
The $4,154 dance floor and DJ equipment was the most expensive item up for bids offered since a $4,768 trip to Las Vegas was offered during last season's Big Money Week.
For the first time since February 17, 2015, absolutely nothing was won in the six Pricing Games that were played on Wednesday's episode.
Since Drew became host, the number of times the Pricing Games played on Wednesday's episode were played on a winless show:
Pick-a-Number: Twice, most recently on February 22, 2012.
One Wrong Price: Seven times, most recently on May 2, 2016.
Hole in One: Zero.
Double Cross: Three times, most recently on February 8, 2016.
Lucky $even: Eight times, most recently on January 13, 2016.
Bonkers: Five times, most recently on January 13, 2016.
Thanks to Friday's all-cash game lineup:
Only one car was offered for the first time since November 22, 2005 (Golden Road for a motorhome, Money Game for a car, no car in the Showcase).
A trip was not offered in any of the Pricing Games for the first time since June 26, 2015 (the Sweet 16 special).
Three small prize games were played for the first time since September 27, 2013 (Plinko special), October 31, 2013 and October 31, 2012.
Three grocery product games were played possibly for the first time ever.
Hole #2 was selected in Punch a Bunch (Row 1, Column 2) for the first time since October 7, 2013 (it contained $500). Until this week, that hole had gone the fourth longest without being selected.
Here are some of the results for the past five Big Money Weeks:
Season
Total Winnings
Cash Won in Big Money Games
Pricing Games won
Wheel Winnings
41
$406,488
$103,600
17
$1,000
42
$450,959
$132,000
10
$15,000
43
$615,939
$200,600
18
$3,000
44
$747,860
$154,100
18
$2,000
45
$707,655
$210,000
12
$3,000
In addition, during these five weeks:
One episode ended with a Double Showcase win: October 16, 2013.
Three episodes ended in a double overbid: April 25, 2013, November 10, 2014 and October 28, 2016.
Only one episode had a perfect bid: April 23, 2013. In fact, that episode had three perfect bids.
Three episodes did not have a Pricing Game winner: October 17, 2013, November 13, 2014 and October 26, 2016.
In addition to the large cash prizes, some expensive prizes were offered in the Pricing Game this week:
In Switch?, the $5,285 jet ski was the most expensive prize offered in this game (excluding trips) since two motor scooters worth $6,898 were offered on the February 14, 2013 episode.
In Race Game, the $5,995 pinball machine was the most expensive prize offered in this game (excluding cars) since a $6,130 refrigerator was offered on the Season 35 premiere (September 19, 2006).
In Double Cross, the $7,465 hot tub was the most expensive prize offered in this game (excluding trips) since an $8,949 off-road vehicle was offered on the November 9, 2012 episode.
