Pat Sajak has been stunning Wheel of Fortune contestants with witty (and oftentimes sarcastic) remarks for more than 40 years — and his last week as host of the long-running game show has been no different.
On Wednesday night’s (June 5) episode of Wheel of Fortune, Sajak couldn’t help but pour salt on the wound after a contestant named Allison failed to correctly solve a puzzle in the bonus round.
Despite having the board to herself, Allison struggled to come up with an answer before time was up. She spit-balled a few potential guesses, but was ultimately unable to come up with the right one.
“Ooooh, you were so not close,” Sajak quipped as the buzzer rang. Allison laughed as she said she’d “rather that be the case,” to which an understanding Sajak replied, “Then you don’t have to kick yourself for that.”
While Allison lost out on an additional $40,000, she was still able to go home with $14,400.
Sajak, for his part, only has two more days to deliver as many zingers as he can before he starts his well-earned retirement. The host, who began on the game show in 1981, announced last year that this would be his final season of Wheel of Fortune.
In the days leading up to his farewell, Sajak has been reminiscing on his tenure in the Thanks for the Memories series. In the third part, which was posted to YouTube on Wednesday, he opened up about his playful reactions to the contestants messing up.
“When someone screws up, my first reaction is, ‘How do I make it better for them?’ But everybody’s different,” he said. “Some you joke with. Some you playfully yell at. Some you have to hug and get them through it.”
Sajak continued, “It’s a big part of what I do, I’m proud of what I do, and I hope they know how much I cared about them and how much I tried to make that experience one they’ll never forget.”
Wheel of Fortune airs on weeknights at 7:30/6:30c. Check out their website for local listings.
