But then you kill the reward of finishing first, even if as co-champions. And now you penalize two people who worked their butts off for 22 minutes. Sure they get their money, but they don't get to defend the crown. It would be like NFL two teams finishing 12-4 in the division, calling them both division champions, but not allowing them to go to the playoffs. Besides, I think viewers would scratch their heads if, on the next program, Alex says "Well...we had a thrilling tie for first place yesterday...but those two won't be back today."
I'm not the biggest fan of a sudden death, but sending both home is unfair IMO.