Quotes from James Holzhauer

Parenting is much more nerve-wracking than 'Jeopardy!'

If you believe in yourself, you don't have to do things the same way everyone else is doing it.

The fact that I win and lose money all the time helps desensitize me, so I can write down $60,000 as the Final Jeopardy wager and not be trembling at the thought of losing that money.

The aggressive betting on the daily doubles is one of my trademarks.

My daughter learned to say, 'They're not even trying to cover!' before her second birthday.

I think there's a mental block for betting big amounts that doesn't exist for me but it does for other people.

The first bet I remember was on the Chargers in Super Bowl 29 with my classmates. I lost a lot of weeks' allowance.

Getting onto 'Jeopardy!' was a pet project my whole life, so it was something I was willing to work really hard on.

When I watched 'Jeopardy!' as a kid, I would primarily watch with my grandmother. She was the most beautiful person the world has ever seen. Her first language wasn't English, so she couldn't follow along well, but she wanted to share this experience with me since she saw it was something I really liked.

It's really funny seeing all these media depictions of me as an intellectual because I'm a connoisseur of low culture.

Even though I'm used to losing bets every day, I am not calm when I sweat a game.

There were times in school where I would say, 'I should go to class.' But I could make $100 playing online poker if I didn't go.

I have doubted myself on several Daily Double answers.

There's nothing better for my interests and talents than combining math and sports for profit.

There are times when you'll only have one or two seconds to decide if you're going to bet on something and you need to be decisive. You need to do math quickly in your head.

I went to Illinois. Most people think I went to Princeton or something. But I was never a diligent student.

The 'Classics Illustrated' series was an excellent primer in literature, and I also really enjoyed Zachary Hamby's mythology books for teens.

My perception of a professional gambler has always been a positive one.

I've got a family and job that I really love with super flexibility.

There's times in a football game where a team goes for a big TD pass. If you don't take a risk like that, you're not going to win.

Fame came at me a lot quicker and stronger than I imagined.

All good professional gamblers are selectively aggressive.

I'm used to gambling.

The last real job I had I was 16-years-old slinging fried chicken in my hometown of Naperville, Ill.