The Million-Dollar Price Is Right Game That Ended In Total Disaster
Although longtime fans of "The Price is Right" will know that the series began without the inclusion of mini-games or alternate game formats, at this point, it's safe to say that the game "Plinko” has become one of the most iconic aspects of the entire series. First debuting in 1983, Plinko begins with the contestant being handed a single chip and completing several small pricing games with the opportunity to earn more chips. Once the contestant has all their chips, they drop them one at a time into the iconic Plinko pegboard.
The contestant then earns the amount of money in the space where their chip landed, although it's extremely difficult to aim for a specific space, due to the erratic nature of the board. Normally, the game is played for no more than $50,000, with the center space being worth $10,000 and the remaining spaces decreasing in value as you move toward the edges. There have even been several instances where a game of Plinko was played for the chance to win a ludicrous sum of $1,000,000 – although one of these games ended about as badly as you could possibly imagine.
This Plinko contestant only earned $600 of a possible $1 million
During Season 43's "Big Money Week," one "The Price is Right" contestant had the chance to win $1 million through a game of Plinko, with the very middle slot being worth a staggering $200,000 (via CBS.com). Unfortunately, this particular contestant's luck was nothing short of horrendous, as his first chip hit the $0 slot, his second hit the $500 slot, and his final chip hit for a meager $100.
That brought his grand total up to $600 out of a possible $1,000,000, and we can only imagine how devastating it must have felt to watch those chips bounce around and fall into the worst places over and over again. Considering the fact that there are only nine slots on the standard Plinko board, the fact that he found his way into the three worst ones is extremely unusual from a statistical standpoint –- though we doubt the significance of this was on the contestant's mind at the time.
In any case, this specific instance will no doubt go down in "The Price is Right" history as one of the unluckiest Plinko performances of all time –- especially considering the $1 million this contestant left lying on the table.