[quote name=\'Footix\' date=\'Oct 17 2003, 07:04 PM\'] So giving a $10,000 vacation as a bonus prize for pulling one ball out of a bin is OK, but offering $500 for guessing a word isn't? [/quote]
No, the bonus round is flawed as well. So the $500 bonus just compounds the randomness.
It's always bothered me that a team can do excellent in the end game, get six words or more, yet walk away as losers essentially if they pull the wrong balls (ahem), while some bozos who absolutely stink at the game can get one word, pull the right ball, and win the grand prize. More commonly, the prize is exactly the same for teams that get 3 words, or 9 in the end.
I'd propose something like this:
The secondary prize should be something like $1000 per word you got. You do lousy and get only 2 words, but are lucky in your pulls, you win $2000. You do phenomenal, get 9 words then bonus lingo, you win $9000.
For the grand prize, I'd like to see something where getting more words gave you more chances to win, rather than simply the one miracle pull which is the same for everybody. Something like where you get one extra chance at the trip for every word over five etc. So, getting 1 to 5 words means you get the trip if you lingo on your first ball, 6 words means you win the trip if you lingo on your first or second ball, 7 words gives your first three balls, etc. It'd be very simple to have Chuck explain "you got six words, that gives you *TWO* chances at the trip".
I doubt this would change the show budget much, lots of times you'd be giving away $2 to $4 thousand instead of the five they're giving now. In exchange, you'd give away a few more trips and more than $5000 sometimes. Adjust the number thresholds etc based on how common it is to get five words, six, seven etcm how many times they get the bonus lingo in 2 pulls, 3 pulls etc.
