Woman makes 'Wheel of Fortune' history with $1M grand prize win

Christina Derevjanik can buy a lot more than just a vowel

Christina Derevjanik can buy a lot more than just a vowel.

The woman, who is from Stamford, Connecticut, made game show history on Tuesday when she won the most money ever on a single episode of “Wheel of Fortune.” Her piled-up winnings totaled $1,035,155 after she won the $1 million prize.

Derevjanik got off to something of a slow start, failing to win either of the two toss-ups to open the show. She caught a break, though, during the first puzzle when she landed on the $1 million wedge during a spin. She then landed on another wedge for a trip to Montana before solving the puzzle, which netted her a total of $10,556.

Derevjanik didn’t win the second puzzle, but she hit paydirt once more during the third puzzle, winning another $5,350, as well as a trip to Tokyo that boosted her total winning to $27,505.

She added another $2,000 during the triple toss-up and tacked $5,650 when she solved the fourth puzzle. She easily advanced to the bonus round with a total of $35,155.