Liz Quesnelle stared into the eyes of a trivia legend and, after taking a moment to collect herself, methodically began to dismantle him.
The 46-year-old Lawrenceville resident and owner of Sewickley’s Gilded Girl Beauty Emporium was a contestant on last Sunday’s episode of “The Chase,” an ABC competition show where regular folks compete against former “Jeopardy!” champions for bragging rights and potential financial rewards. Quesnelle found herself up against chaser James Holzhauer, a seasoned trivia veteran who once mounted a 32-game winning streak on “Jeopardy!”
Known as the “high roller” of a group of judges that also includes Ken Jennings, Brad Rutter and Mark Labbett, Holzhauer made Quesnelle an offer she couldn’t refuse in the form of a $300,000 pot. Her gamble paid off as she ended up making quick work of Holzhauer during their one-on-one chase and, with the help of her two equally gifted teammates, beat him in the final chase and earned a grand prize of $660,000, $220,000 of which she pocketed for herself.
“Everyone has been so ridiculously supportive, both on social media and people popping into my store to say good job,” Quesnelle told the Post-Gazette. “Pittsburghers like to support each other and Pittsburgh likes winners. I’d like to think of it as doing my small part to earn our nickname of the city of champions.”
Quesnelle, a licensed esthetician and makeup artist, moved to Pittsburgh from her native Chicago and in 2015 opened Gilded Girl in Upper Lawrenceville. The store, which sells beauty products from all over the world, vacated its Lawrenceville location in 2018 before recently resuming brick-and-mortar operations in Sewickley.
Like many local trivia buffs, Quesnelle has always had “a natural curiosity about the world” that has led to an “abundance of information floating around my head.” She constantly finds herself reading, going down Wikipedia rabbit holes and boring her friends with what she at least considers to be fun facts and stories.
She put her wealth of knowledge to the test in 2015 when she went on “Jeopardy!” and came out of the experience as a one-day champion.
“I was quite nervous about the whole situation,” Quesnelle said. “But the gameplay is so fun and fast and challenging that it really was one of the best experiences of my life. The fact I got to be on when [the late] Alex Trebek was the host was sort of the icing on the cake.”
Going on “Jeopardy!” allowed her to become a part of an extensive online trivia community and gained her access to a Facebook group for former “Jeopardy!” contestants. Someone posted in that group that “The Chase” was casting for its second season, so Quesnelle figured she’d give it a shot. After a series of interviews and auditions that took about three months, she was granted the opportunity to compete on “The Chase.”
Her episode was taped on May 16 in Los Angeles. Before flying out, she was sent COVID-19 tests that she had to perform on camera to remove any concerns about the results’ legitimacy. After arriving in California, she was given another test almost immediately and then forced to quarantine for a day and a half in her hotel. The virus protocols on set were strict, with crew masked at all times and the contestants keeping their faces covered until it was time to tape the episode.
Quesnelle found out that Holzhauer would be her chaser at the same time as teammates Diva Bole and Greg Peterson, and it took her a second to process what that meant for their chances of success.
“He was the one out of all the chasers I wanted to face the least,” she said. “I wanted to beat him the most, but I wanted to face him the least because statistically, he’s the most successful chaser.... It’s a combination of his skill and personality that makes him a little more daunting to face. You don’t get the sense that Ken or Brad fully embrace the villain role we want the chaser to have. But James kind of does.”
She got out to a strong start in the rapid-fire round, earning $100,000 for her team right away. Holzhauer gave her the option of a slightly more difficult chase with an enticing reward of turning that $100,000 into $300,000. It took her about two minutes to deliberate, but Quesnelle accepted and, after defeating Holzhauer, became the world record holder for most money banked during a chase in any “Chase” game worldwide.
“It’s crazy that I did that,” she said. “I’m so pleased with myself and so surprised! I’m a pretty bold person in regular life, but that seemed like even a bold move for me.”
Her time in Pittsburgh helped her earn that prestigious title when she correctly knew that Philadelphians pronounce “water” like “wooder,” a fact of which even Holzhauer wasn’t aware.
“I really enjoyed being able to say I’m from Pittsburgh and there are very few things we enjoy more than making fun of Philadelphia, which is true,” Quesnelle said.
The final chase was a nail-biter, as Holzhauer came dangerously close to overtaking the combination of Quesnelle, Bole and Peterson before a double whammy of missed questions sunk his chances in the final seconds. Quesnelle thought he was “a little bit rattled” by how tough her team turned out to be and that getting in his head is really the only way to win against a trivia maestro like Holzhauer.
Now that Quesnelle has conquered “The Chase,” she plans to use part of that $220,000 toward helping Gilded Girl “get on track” after a difficult year for all small businesses due to the pandemic. The rest will go toward a “really nice trip” with her husband next spring, assuming he’s not sick of hearing her gloat by then.
“I keep looking at my husband and going, ‘Remember that time I beat James Holzhauer?’ It’s incredible.”
Joshua Axelrod: jaxelrod@post-gazette.com and Twitter @jaxelburgh.
First Published: June 24, 2021, 6:35 p.m.
