One of the most notable game shows of all time—Wheel of Fortune—began in 1975 and is still going strong today. The game focuses on puzzles that spell out certain words or phrases. The three contestants in each game are given just one clue and they then have to guess letters that may be part of the answer.
The more letters on the board, obviously, the easier the puzzle is to solve. However, it’s always amazing when someone can solve the puzzle with very few letters, merely basing it off how many words and letters are accounted for in the answer, as well as the clue.
In the decades that the show has been on, there have been only a few times when someone has been able to guess the phrase with very few letters on the board. Some of the most amazing solves include how this contestant solved the puzzle with just three letters or this contestant solved this ridiculously long puzzle with just one letter on the board. Incredible!
However, one of the most stunning solves of all time came from a man named Rufus. The category for the round was merely “Event” and had a two-word answer up to solve. The entire puzzle was just two words with 17 letters in total. Rufus got to go first and guessed the letter T—of which just one T appeared in the second word.
Just a few seconds later, and much to the shock of host Pat Sajak and the crowd, Rufus guessed the entire puzzle—and won the round! Even his opponents were shocked and cheered him on. It was quite an impressive moment!
Sajak immediately went over to shake Rufus’ hand, telling him that his solve was “really something.” He looked just as bewildered as everyone else—including Rufus himself, who you can tell barely could believe what just happened.
“Excellent solve, excellent job,” Sajak finally tells him in a more serious manner, sharing that he won $1,700 on that round, giving him a total of $7,100 and bringing him to the bonus round.
It was one of those moments that you really need to see to believe! Take a look at the clip below to see just how crazy the moment was, and what the puzzle was that he guessed.
Are you a big Wheel of Fortune fan? What were some of the most memorable or impressive moments on the gameshow that you can remember?