The Monday, July 7, episode of Wheel of Fortune was a rerun from December 23, 2024, which featured Thomas Russo taking home an impressive cash prize after correctly guessing the final puzzle.

Before he made his guess, Russo seemingly put all of his strength into spinning the prize wheel, leaving host Ryan Seacrest stunned. “A very good spin!” Seacrest noted, as the wheel took ages to slow down and land on the prize card.

Russo chose the letters H, G, C, and I to add to the automatically given R, S, T, L, N, and E letters. For the “What Are You Doing?” category, which he chose over “Event” and “Thing,” he was left with this: _ _ _ I N G/ T H _ N G S / H _ _ _ EN. Almost immediately, Russo shouted out the correct answer: “Making Things Happen!”

Seacrest noted, “You certainly are,” then opened up the prize envelope to reveal $40,000. Combined with his winnings from earlier in the game, Russo earned a total of $57,100 from playing.

Many fans used the “making things happen” puzzle in their congratulatory messages to Russo on social media. ”
Thomas how about making things happen with some spending cash? $40,000!!” one person commented on YouTube. Another wrote, “Way to go, Thomas! You made things happen for sure!”

One excited commenter noted, “Thomas was an absolute beast tonight. Didn’t have to think too hard about his letter choices or the puzzle. He had it nailed down right from the start. Congratulations, Thomas! Enjoy the extra cash!” Someone else said, “Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy. Congrats Tommy!”

Another YouTube commenter commended Russo on his letter choices in the final puzzle, writing, “G and H are usually the best letter choices. Good solve. Congrats, Thomas!”

Russo’s win in the final puzzle came after he beat Brenda Sweetser and Cobina Gibson in the competition.

Wheel of Fortune, Season 43, airing this fall, check local listings