Wheel of Fortune Contestant Misses $40,000 in Bonus Round Blunder

On the November 18 episode of Wheel of Fortune, Joey Sweet, a program director from Oceanside, California, came agonizingly close to a $40,000 prize—but stumbled at the final hurdle. The “phrase” category puzzle read: “CA_ED’ ‘_ _’ ‘_AND’.” Sweet had carefully chosen letters C, D, M, A, and used a Wild Card F, yet his guess, “Cleared in hand,” fell short.

The correct answer, “Carved By Hand,” left Sweet—and even host Ryan Seacrest—scratching their heads. Vanna White, anticipating the reveal, threw her hands up in mild frustration. Seacrest offered consolation: “You were on the right track. This is a tricky one,” while revealing the missed $40,000 prize.

Sweet took the miss gracefully, walking away with a $16,000 prize package including cash and a Mexico trip. Fans quickly took to YouTube and X (formerly Twitter), debating the difficulty of guessing two-letter words like “By.”

With each viral blunder, Wheel of Fortune proves it can turn even the smallest slip-up into internet gold.