Arther Chu has dominated the “Jeopardy!” scoreboard this week, but his “Chuck Forrest” method of playing the game has upset diehard fans.
Chu doesn’t play one category at a time; he jumps around the board, searching for the daily double to rack up money. The 30-year-old contestant explained his strategy to “Good Morning America”, telling the news show he plays this way to confuse his opponents.
By not sticking to one category, the other contestants will have a delayed response as their brain tries to rack up the relating information. Since Chu is the only person who knows his next move, he claims he has an advantage over his competitors. Chu also aiming for the Daily Double also meant taking it off the board and away from the other players, whether he won or lost money.
Many “Jeopardy!” fans are upset by Chu’s technique and took to social media to express their discontent:
Arthur Chu who's on Jeopardy creeps me out & I hate the way he play the game..he starts in the middle of the category,lookin 4 daily doubles
— Oh Okay! (@Trishh_S) January 31, 2014
Others praised Chu's winning strategy:
This #arthurchu guy on #jeopardy is awesome. All you morons complaining about him "ruining" the game are idiots. — Micah In Lexington (@MicahInLex) February 4, 2014
However, Chu isn’t the one who came up with the “Forrest Bounce Technique.” The 5-time “Jeopardy” champion Chuck Forrest, whose unpredictable gameplay still helped rack up his earnings, developed the show strategy.
As far as Chu is concerned, he has nothing to apologize for as he is sticking to the rules and playing fairly. Chu plays to win and knows the only control he has in the game is to pick the questions.
'”Being unsportsmanlike is calling your opponents names or refusing to shake their hands. It shouldn't apply to playing the game as hard as you can and trying to win as hard as you can, within the confines of the rules,” Chu told The Daily Mail.
“Not giving my opponents a chance to answer, to me, is just like not giving your opponents the chance to shoot in basketball or not letting them get within range of the goal in soccer. It's not 'unsportsmanlike', it's playing defense,” Chu added.
