A behind-the-scenes look at Milwaukee ER doctor Amy Hummel's 'Jeopardy!' journey following her five-game winning streak

With parents who tune into "Jeopardy!" religiously, it became Dr. Amy Hummel's "post-school watch" as a kid growing up in Wheaton, Illinois.

Her folks continue to catch it just about every day. And, when the Milwaukee ER doctor visits them in Tennessee, they all watch it together like old times.

This year — through a serendipitous turn of events — Hummel won her first of five "Jeopardy!" games on her parents' wedding anniversary, with them in the audience.

"Every time I'd walk back out on stage, I'd turn to my parents in the audience and shrug, like, 'What is happening right now?'" Hummel said. "It was entirely unexpected."

Following her time on the show — which aired in late April and early May — Hummel, 29, will return for a future "Tournament of Champions."

From initially having to turn down the game show because of her residency to what it was like behind-the-scenes of filming, here's a look at Hummel's "Jeopardy!" journey:

Dr. Amy Hummel was invited to be on 'Jeopardy!' previously, but had to pass due to her residency

Watching "Jeopardy!" growing up, Hummel liked to see if she could get any of the clues right. As she got older and better understood the phrasing of the clues, she found herself getting more and more of them.

In her busy adult life, she hadn't been tuning in like she had back in the day. She was training to be a doctor, what she wanted to be for as long as she could remember.

Hummel attended St. Olaf College for undergrad and the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine for medical school. She moved to Wisconsin in 2020 for an emergency medicine residency at the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics. She had previously done a rotation there as a fourth-year med student.

A few years ago, Hummel decided to try the online "Jeopardy!" test, the "entry point" for people who want to compete on the show.

She took it three more times since. And, after hitting a certain score, she was invited to do a Zoom audition in 2022. It was essentially a test that she typed the answers to, she explained.

After doing well enough on that, she played a game of "Jeopardy!" over a video call, where she pretended to buzz in and also did a practice interview.

In spring 2023, Hummel was invited to be on the show, which was scheduled to film about a month later.

"I was a little panicky because I was still in residency and it's hard to get time off and travel," Hummel said. "My mind went right to, 'How am I going to get coverage for my shifts?' And then it's like, 'Oh my God, I only have four weeks to learn literally everything there is to know about everything.' But then, as it was approaching, it got more and more exciting."

Friends connected her with "Jeopardy!" champ Morgan Wilbanks, a fellow UW Hospitals and Clinics alum. He shared with her a flashcard deck with every "Jeopardy!" question from 1984 to 2019 via an app. Hummel also watched previous games and pretended to buzz in to get the timing down.

But, Hummel's "Jeopardy!" dreams would have to be put on hold for a bit longer.

With many of her colleagues away at a conference when filming was supposed to take place, she couldn't get the shift coverage she needed.

When she let the show know, they said they'd call her up another time. That time came earlier this year.

'A blur': What the filming was like for Dr. Amy Hummel on 'Jeopardy!'

Following residency, Hummel moved to Milwaukee about nine months ago to be an ER doctor in the area.

A few months ago, she was invited again to be on "Jeopardy!" Leading up to filming in March, she watched an episode just about every day to prep.

And, she had to shake off some serious nightmares: The categories being in languages she had never seen before, not being able to buzz in fast enough, etc.

"You can tell when other people know the answer to a question and they just can't buzz in fast enough," she said. "It's a knowledge show, but it's also a game show."

In mid-March, Hummel traveled to California for filming at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City.

Hummel went in with low expectations and the mindset that she was there to have fun and just see what happens. That helped take off some of the stress and pressure, she said.

On the first day she was asked to report to the studio, she sat in a green room with several other contestants. Throughout the day, contestants were randomly pulled to play, Hummel said.

"The pool got smaller and smaller," she said. "We had coffee and snacks — I was drinking a ton of coffee — sitting there and watching the games with everyone else. We were kind of playing along."

After watching four games, Hummel got picked to play the fifth and final one of the day. Hummel answered 21 total clues correctly that episode and won $18,900.

Being her parents' anniversary, host Ken Jennings gave them a shout-out, which was "very sweet," Hummel said.

"It was awesome," she said. "I'm so, so glad they were able to come. Like I said, they're the ones who watch it pretty religiously."

After watching games from the audience all day, guess what her parents did when they got back to their hotel? Turned on "Jeopardy!"

"They didn't want to miss the 'Tournament of Champions,'" Hummel said.

Hummel was back in the studio the next day as the returning champion. She would go on to win four of the five games played that day.

Hummel attributed her love for trivia and reading — how she picks up "a lot of random stuff" — to her successful run.

Plus, certain skills she's learned from being a doctor, like knowing how to suppress adrenaline and think quickly in high-pressure situations.

Hummel also had to take 300-question tests for years while in school. So, as the games went on, she was more easily able to push through the fatigue and tiredness, she said.

In between games, Hummel had about a half-hour to change, have a snack and get her hair and makeup refreshed, Hummel shared. And, there was a lunch break between games three and four.

"It was really exhausting, honestly," Hummel said. "It was kind of a blur between each one, especially as they kept rolling on."

She was thankful for the show's producers — who she described as "the nicest, sweetest people" — who shepherded her and the other contenders through the process.

During her "whirlwind" 48 hours in California, Hummel also managed to cram in a visit with her medical school roommate and her mom's friend who live out there.

Before she knew it, she was back at work in Wisconsin, where her colleagues and friends had no idea what she had just accomplished.

What it was like for Dr. Amy Hummel when the episodes aired

When the episodes aired, Hummel's coworkers were "pretty excited." When one of her shifts overlapped an episode she was on, her department put it on in the background and ordered pizza.

Friends from years gone by "came out of the woodwork" to congratulate her, too.

"People got into it," Hummel said. "It was very fun."

What Dr. Amy Hummel plans to do with her winnings as she looks forward to the 'Tournament of Champions'

"I feel like I'm still digesting it — very much so," Hummel said.

She expects the wins to feel more real once her earnings roll in. Her five-day total was nearly $101,000.

A good chunk of that will go toward student loans, she said. She's also planning to go on a nice trip this fall, potentially to Italy for the first time.

"The best part for me is knowing it's not over," Hummel said. "I think I'd be very, very sad. You really only are on once in a lifetime unless they ask you back."

She was indeed asked back for a future "Tournament of Champions."

"I was so excited," she said. "I was like, 'What do you mean I get to come back?'"

As she settles back into her everyday life, she said she's been watching "Jeopardy!" more regularly and still pretends to buzz in.

Whenever she gets word that the "ToC" is coming up, she said she'll start preparing more.

Besides work and "Jeopardy!" prep, Hummel enjoys running, especially along the lakefront and on trails, knitting things for her loved ones' babies, and keeping in touch with fellow contestants. She said their group chat has helped her through "this really weird time."

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Behind-the-scenes with Milwaukee doctor, Jeopardy champion Amy Hummel