A mathematics teacher from North Plainfield, New Jersey...

Mike Thayer

Date of First Appearance:
Spring of 1990 in the College Tournament; it aired in May. I appeared (for one day) on the subsequent Tournament of Champions.

Total winnings:
$26,000

Favorite anecdote?
Playing golf in the summer of 1990 on the Rutgers University (the school I proudly represented in the tournament, my alma mater) golf course, and having a foursome at the next tee recognize me and start to sing the Jeopardy! theme song.

Did Jeopardy! have any effect on my life?
Well, it certainly made my senior year of college a lot simpler, financially, and it gave me the opportunity to see Europe (my then-girlfriend, now-wife and I went for 3 weeks after graduation in 1991)--both of which were things that benefited me enormously.

Did I do anything crazy with my winnings?
Not really, although I bought a guitar that I had always wanted (a Fender Strat Plus-model Stratocaster, which I still have and play when I get the opportunity). Oh, and the Europe trip. Traveling through 6 countries in 16 days by train and ferry was, by any measure, not sane.

What else would I like viewers to know about me?
I am a teacher at a terrific public school in New Jersey (and have been lucky to have great colleagues and students throughout my teaching career), have a wonderful wife and family, and soon am going to be a dad for the first time!

"He was a junior at Rutgers University when he won the 1990 College Championship. Today, he's a mathematics teacher. From North Plainfield, New Jersey..."

2005 Ultimate Tournament of Champions Round 1 player: $5,000.
1990 Tournament of Champions quarterfinalist: $1,000.
1990 College Champion: $25,000.

Mike appeared in the following archived game:
#4731, aired 2005-03-14 Chris Miller vs. Mike Thayer vs. Dennis Donohue 2005 Ultimate Tournament of Champions Round 1, game 24. (Sarah:...
Mike previously appeared on Jeopardy! as Michael Thayer in the following archived game:
#1421, aired 1990-11-05 Bob Blake vs. Dan Katz vs. Michael Thayer 1990 Tournament of Champions quarterfinal game 1.

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