Breaking down the players of the all-champion Jeopardy Masters tournament

Jeopardy is about to have its own Avengers moment. When the new masters tournament kicks off on Monday, May 8, the six highest-grossing champions from the contemporary era of the beloved game show will compete for a grand prize under the watchful eye of host Ken Jennings, himself no slouch when it comes to Jeopardy records.

Casey Durkin/Jeopardy! Productions, Inc. (2) ; Eric McCandless via Getty Images Amy Schneider, James Holzhauer, and Matt Amodio are among the players in the upcoming 'Jeopardy' masters tournament

Let's refresh ourselves on the players who will be competing in the new tournament: Matt Amodio, Sam Buttrey, Andrew He, James Holzhauer, Mattea Roach, and Amy Schneider.

Matt Amodio

Amodio claims to know Jeopardy "inside and out," which is one reason that he uses "what's..." to start his answers instead of the more traditional "what is..." The shortened version gives him one less thing to think about when formulating his responses, he says.

Winning streak: 38

Total winnings: $1,528,601

Last appearance: Losing to Buttrey in the semifinal round of the 2022 Tournament of Champions.

Sam Buttrey

A dead ringer for Steve Martin, Buttrey has taken a rather unique path to Jeopardy fame in that he hasn't actually played any regular-season games. He won the first-ever Professors Tournament in 2021, claiming the top prize of $100,000. That got him into the 2022 Tournament of Champions, where he made it into the final round against He and Schneider.

Winning streak: n/a

Total winnings: $150,000

Last appearance: Winning third place in the 2022 Tournament of Champions.

Andrew He

He is connected to multiple other masters. He openly acknowledges basing his style of play on Holzhauer, and his streak was first broken by Schneider — though he managed to go blow-for-blow with her when they met again in last year's Tournament of Champions final. How will they match up this time?

Winning streak: 5

Total winnings: $257,365

Last appearance: Winning second place in the 2022 Tournament of Champions.

James Holzhauer

Holzhauer, objectively one of the most successful Jeopardy! players of all time, came in second to Jennings in the 2020 Greatest of All Time tournament, which aired just months before the death of former host Alex Trebek. His background in sports gambling informs his aggressive approach to gameplay, which has reshaped how players approach Jeopardy. He's renowned for his signature "push" where he bets all his money on a Daily Double, a strategy that's helped him set the top 12 records for highest one-day winnings in the show's history.

Winning streak: 32

Total winnings: $2,962,216

Last appearance: Coming in second to Jennings (but above Brad Ruttner) in the Greatest of All Time tournament.

Mattea Roach

The youngest player in this masters tournament, Roach managed the incredible feat of winning 23 straight games at the age of 23. They describe their playing style as more top-down and straightforward than big betters like Holzhauer and He.

Winning streak: 23

Total winnings: $560,983

Last appearance: Losing to He in the semifinal round of the 2022 Tournament of Champions.

Amy Schneider

The first openly transgender contestant in Jeopardy! history, Schneider broke into the game by unseating He before mounting an impressive streak of her own, which is now second only to Jennings.

Winning streak: 40

Total winnings: $1,634,800

Last appearance: Winning the 2022 Tournament of Champions over He and Buttrey.

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