Peter McFerrin took down multi-day Jeopardy! champion Chris D’Angelo has been on a hot streak of his own. As McFerrin enters his fifth game, fans are curious to know more about him.
The energy industry professional has won $96,997 in four games so far. Can he make it to game five and make his way to the Tournament of Champions?
Here is what you should know about Jeopardy! champion Peter McFerrin.
He is friends with Jeopardy! super champions
When McFerrin was a child, he grew up with Yogesh Raut and James Holzhauer in Indiana. He was on a quiz team with Raut in high school. McFerrin knew Holzhauer through a softball league in their town, where he always called him “Jamie.”. McFerrin mentioned them both on the show. It is not clear if they gave him pointers, but his streak is pointing towards that they did.
McFerrin is from the Midwest
Although the game show contestant lists that he is from Corona, California, on the show, he told host Ken Jennings that he is actually from a small town in Indiana. Fans pointed out McFerrin’s accent, which they said is perfect for the radio or announcing.
His job history
McFerrin is currently a Senior Advisor at Southern California Edison. According to his LinkedIn, he “originates and manages interconnection agreements under the FERC jurisdictional Wholesale Distribution Access Tariff (WDAT) and Transmission Owner Tariff (TOT).”
Before that, he was an advisor for grid interconnection and contract development at the same company. McFerrin has also been a senior analyst for large power demand response programs there.
From 2012 to 2014, McFerrin worked at the Pacific Gas and Electric Company. His other jobs have included The Brookings Institution, Econometrica, Inc., and a research assistant at his college.
He has moved all over for college
McFerrin started out at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy in 1996. He then moved to New York to attend Cornell University for Economics.
The game show contestant then moved to California to attend the University of Southern California. There, he got a certificate in Transportation Systems, a Master’s in Economics, and a PhD in Policy Planning and Development.
He has released music
Linked in his Instagram bio, McFerrin shared a song called Boy Genius by a band called Prisms & Math. It was released in September 2017 and is available for digital download. Not much is known about the band, but their bio reads, “We’re not selling out, we’re buying in.”
During his fourth game, he shared that he loves Indie Rock and one of his favorite bands is XTC.
The champion is a cat dad
During this third game, McFerrin revealed that he is the owner of six cats. They are all rescue cats. They are Pearly, Bunny, Willow, Hugh, Charlotte, and Spotty Guy.
Relationship Status
Although he has not talked about his spouse on TV, McFerrin wears a wedding ring, so it is assumed that he is married. Also, when talking about his cats, he said, “Our house is a bit crazy,” implying that he lives with someone.
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