James Holzhauer’s Game Show Boot Camp ‘trivia lover’s dream come true’

James Holzhauer tried for 13 years to get onto “Jeopardy!” and Jason Zuffranieri tried for 25 years before they finally made it in 2019 and etched their names in the quiz show’s record books.

“So never give up,” said Holzhauer, a Las Vegas professional sports bettor.

To try to speed up that process, 45 aspiring contestants attended Holzhauer’s second annual Game Show Boot Camp on Saturday at Hampton Inn Tropicana.

“We sent eight or nine of last year’s campers to ‘Jeopardy!’. It was really amazing,” Holzhauer said. “I hope we get the same results this year.”

The all-day event, which featured workshops and seminars such as “How to be a great contestant” and “Game show writing,” was akin to a “Jeopardy!” fantasy camp. Eight former “Jeopardy!” champions participated in the all-day event, and two contestant coordinators for the show also were on hand.

“It’s really great to get together with so many like-minded people and so many luminaries within the game show world, and really just nerd out together over our shared love of quiz games,” said camper Garrett Vonk, 42, of Portland, Oregon. “It was kind of a trivia lover’s dream come true. It was one of the most fun days I’ve had in a long time.”

Also taking part in the camp alongside Holzhauer and Zuffranieri were Brad Rutter, Amy Schneider, Matt Amodio, Mattea Roach, Sam Buttrey and Sam Kavanaugh.

“We’re finally at a moment in time where we have enough trivia celebrities (that) we can get people together for a great cause,” Holzhauer said.

The camp was a fundraiser for Project 150 (project150.org), a Las Vegas nonprofit that provides free support and services to homeless, displaced and disadvantaged high school students.

The “Jeopardy!” champions paid their own way to Las Vegas and volunteered their time. Zuffranieri and his wife stayed with his mother, JoAnn Ham, who lives in Summerlin.

“We came because we love the Holzhauers and Project 150, and it really is an honor to be up here with the real legends,” Zuffranieri said.

The event also featured a 5x5 trivia tournament that culminated with the “Titan Throwdown 2,” which drew a sold-out crowd of 100 and was won by Holzhauer.

Zuffranieri, who won last year’s Throwdown and taped his 19-game “Jeopardy!” win streak while Holzhauer’s 32-game win streak aired, first applied for the show when he was a senior in high school. He said the camp would have “absolutely” helped him make it sooner.

“Coming to something like this, James is the greatest, in my opinion, in history. That’s knowledge you just don’t get for nothing,” he said. “It’s really a special time for these people.”

Troy Meyer, who won the boot camp tournament, auditioned for “Jeopardy!” at last year’s camp and got on the show. He won six games in January and will be in the show’s “Tournament of Champions.”

“I got on the show because I was here,” said Meyer, 39, of Tampa, Florida. “They came and auditioned all the boot camp attendees, and I got my shot.

“(The camp) is a cool chance to compete and hang out with the great champions, and to show that you can hang with the big players.”

The event also featured a “Jeopardy! Masters panel” and workshop on “State of the buzzer.”

“This is really one of the first chances I’ve had to work with a competition grade buzzer, which is such a big factor when they talk about how such an enormous amount of “Jeopardy!” is really about your ability to work with a buzzer,” said camper Ryan Luchs, 28, of Phoenix. “It’s learning, it’s competition and it’s camaraderie.”

Holzhauer, who hopes to return to TV for the fourth season of “The Chase” when the writers strike ends, said the campers received invaluable tips.

“We’re dispensing real world advice that people can take to the bank,” he said. “I took a few people aside and said to them, ‘I notice when you’re buzzing, you’re clicking in too fast. You’re going to lock yourself out on the “Jeopardy!” stage.’

“Or ‘I can see the way you’re speaking, you need to speak up. People on TV, they want you to enunciate clearly, move the game along and be your best self out there. I think that will really help people have a real chance.”

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.