WoF Express Question

[Dbacksfan12]

I was watching last night’s rerun with a friend who is a frequent Wheel critic.  They also wouldn’t be caught dead on this board, so I said I’d ask:

A contestant hit the express and ran himself down to $250, at which point he announced his intentions to solve.  Pat pretty much told him that would be a stupid thing to do.  She seemed surprised that Pat was allowed to assist the contestant like that to the other contestants’ detriment.  Is this SOP, or did Pat screw up?

[Flerbert419]

I would treat this as a rules reminder versus a true S&P violation of any kind.

For years, Pat has prompted contestants to use the Wild Card on a top dollar spin. It's up to the contestant to make the final decision, but sometimes there's a lot going on and he's trying to help.

[TLEberle]

I was watching last night’s rerun with a friend who is a frequent Wheel critic.  They also wouldn’t be caught dead on this board, so I said I’d ask:

A contestant hit the express and ran himself down to $250, at which point he announced his intentions to solve.  Pat pretty much told him that would be a stupid thing to do.  She seemed surprised that Pat was allowed to assist the contestant like that to the other contestants’ detriment.  Is this SOP, or did Pat screw up?

I might treat it as Pat being an avatar for the audience. If you’re constantly getting $1,000 per letter, have bought enough vowels and you know the answer go to town! Call every letter on the boa arc! It’s no different than telling the contestants in the speed up phase to call a letter when they look ready to solve. To piggyback on Flerb, part of hosting is being friendly and reminding people of the rules from time to time.

Sorry to hear your friend wouldn’t be caught dead here.

[BrandonFG]

I don’t see the harm. Part of the host’s job is to make the show enjoyable, and the Express space is one change I’ve openly welcomed to make Wheel more watchable. Not knowing how many spaces were left on the board, you already know the puzzle; why not get some free money guessing a few letters? Therefore a potentially bigger payday looks much better than the house minimum.

[CJBojangles]

For years, Pat has prompted contestants to use the Wild Card on a top dollar spin. It's up to the contestant to make the final decision, but sometimes there's a lot going on and he's trying to help.

FWIW, he didn’t prompt me to use it when I landed on $2500. Could’ve gotten two S’s worth had I been paying closer attention. (It ended up helping me win the bonus round anyway, so I’m not mad.)

[vtown7]

My appearance was in the Free Spin (not spins!) days - if memory serves the rules (maybe the staff?) mentioned that ultimately Pat was not held to having to prompt to see if you would use the token, he usually would.

[SuperMatch93]

A contestant hit the express and ran himself down to $250, at which point he announced his intentions to solve.

I'm confused, don't you have to fill in all the consonants before you can get off the Express and solve? Or am I reading this wrong?

[TLEberle]

A contestant hit the express and ran himself down to $250, at which point he announced his intentions to solve.

I'm confused, don't you have to fill in all the consonants before you can get off the Express and solve? Or am I reading this wrong?

you’re reading it wrong. You’re allowed to dump out at any point with your cash, be ause a miss is a bankrupt. If you know the puzzle, absolutely ride that pony to victory.

[Otm Shank]

If you know the puzzle, absolutely ride that pony to victory.

Unless the puzzle is A SWARM OF MOSQUITOES

(Technically, it's a scourge of mosquitoes, which would only be used if they are severely over on the prize budget.)

[JasonA1]

You’re allowed to dump out at any point with your cash, be ause a miss is a bankrupt. If you know the puzzle, absolutely ride that pony to victory.

Then I'm equally confused, because I'm near certain there's no "stop" option. You either solve/complete the puzzle, or do something incorrect, which triggers a bankrupt. Which also means, if you have consonants left to call, you should absolutely call them, and never solve early.

-Jason

[TLEberle]

You’re allowed to dump out at any point with your cash, be ause a miss is a bankrupt. If you know the puzzle, absolutely ride that pony to victory.

Then I'm equally confused, because I'm near certain there's no "stop" option. You either solve/complete the puzzle, or do something incorrect, which triggers a bankrupt. Which also means, if you have consonants left to call, you should absolutely call them, and never solve early.

-Jason

I don’t know what I was thinking of because I flatly remembered it wrong. It’s been a minute since I watched an express round. If you don’t know the puzzle then yes, there is a risk you could lose your bank. Assuming you know it and can spell the words, enjoy each letter being worth more than anything else but top dollar.

[clemon79]

Pat has always pointed out to players on the Express that there's no point to solving prematurely because all they are doing is leaving money on the table. I am certain that a player who insisted on doing so (say, they weren't sure of a spelling of a word and didn't want to risk it; yeah, I know, it's Wheel, Jake) would be allowed to do it, but he's always couched it as "if you know it, why don't you call another consonant and make some more money."

[SuperSweeper]

Pat has always pointed out to players on the Express that there's no point to solving prematurely because all they are doing is leaving money on the table. I am certain that a player who insisted on doing so (say, they weren't sure of a spelling of a word and didn't want to risk it; yeah, I know, it's Wheel, Jake) would be allowed to do it, but he's always couched it as "if you know it, why don't you call another consonant and make some more money."

Players have solved before they’ve revealed all of the consonants; it’s as stupid as it sounds. Fortunately, it’s been an increasingly rare occurrence.

[Kevin Prather]

Pat has always pointed out to players on the Express that there's no point to solving prematurely because all they are doing is leaving money on the table. I am certain that a player who insisted on doing so (say, they weren't sure of a spelling of a word and didn't want to risk it; yeah, I know, it's Wheel, Jake) would be allowed to do it, but he's always couched it as "if you know it, why don't you call another consonant and make some more money."

Players have solved before they’ve revealed all of the consonants; it’s as stupid as it sounds. Fortunately, it’s been an increasingly rare occurrence.

Were any of them for the reason Chris mentioned, which is probably the only valid reason and one I never would have thought of?

[SuperSweeper]

Pat has always pointed out to players on the Express that there's no point to solving prematurely because all they are doing is leaving money on the table. I am certain that a player who insisted on doing so (say, they weren't sure of a spelling of a word and didn't want to risk it; yeah, I know, it's Wheel, Jake) would be allowed to do it, but he's always couched it as "if you know it, why don't you call another consonant and make some more money."

Players have solved before they’ve revealed all of the consonants; it’s as stupid as it sounds. Fortunately, it’s been an increasingly rare occurrence.

Were any of them for the reason Chris mentioned, which is probably the only valid reason and one I never would have thought of?

Not that I can recall. It generally seemed to happen quite a bit earlier than the last letter or two. I do agree that it’s a legitimate reason.

BTW, there hasn’t been an early solve in the last two seasons.