Wheel of Fortune Results, Oct. 5, 2026: Tom Swirkowski Wins, Misses NOT A QUICK FIX
Short version: Tom Swirkowski of Oak Creek, Wis., won Wheel of Fortune on Monday, Oct. 5, 2026, with $30,250, then missed the bonus puzzle NOT A QUICK FIX. The dollar figures here come from Andy Nguyen's recap; the winner, the puzzle and the miss match Wheel of Fortune Tonight.
| Player | Hometown | Finished with |
|---|---|---|
| Tom Swirkowski | Oak Creek, Wis. | $30,250 — winner |
| Kim Teixeira | Virginia Beach, Va. | $13,800, incl. a Curaçao trip |
| Pamela Edwards | Omaha, Neb. | $1,000 minimum |
What was the Wheel of Fortune bonus puzzle on Oct. 5?
NOT A QUICK FIX, in the category Phrase. Swirkowski picked Phrase over Event and Thing, per Andy Nguyen's recap.
R, S, T, L, N and E gave him the N and T of NOT and nothing else. His C, H, M and O added an O and one C, and the three words underneath stayed almost blank.
| Stage | The board |
|---|---|
| After R S T L N E | N_T _ _____ ___ |
| After C H M O | NOT _ ___C_ ___ |
| Answer | NOT A QUICK FIX |
He tried FAT CHANCE and WATCH ME before time ran out, per the same recap. The envelope held $50,000.
👉 Count the letters he still needed: A, Q, U, I, K, F and X. Seven unseen letters across eight open squares is about as hard as this round gets.
Who won Wheel of Fortune on Monday, Oct. 5?
Swirkowski, and it wasn't close. He solved both opening toss-ups, both early rounds and the last puzzle of the night.
Here's how his $30,250 adds up from the recap's round totals. Nobody else publishes it this way, so we did the sum.
| Where | Puzzle he solved | Banked |
|---|---|---|
| Two toss-ups | LOS ANGELES LAKERS, FITNESS TRACKER | $3,000 |
| Round 1 | SURFBOARD, SKATEBOARD, SNOWBOARD | $6,450 |
| Round 2 | THE BEVERLY HILLBILLIES | $3,500 |
| Triple toss-up | THE WORLD CUP, PAPER CUP | $4,000 |
| Final round | SUSHI FOR SCHOOL LUNCH | $13,300 |
That last one did the damage. The final spin set each consonant at $1,900, and he called seven that were on the board: three S's, an R and three H's.
What did the other two players win?
Kim Teixeira took the prize puzzle, THAT'S ABOVE MY PAY GRADE. It paid $4,600 in cash plus a Curaçao hotel stay valued at $7,200, and her HICCUP toss-up added $2,000.
Pamela Edwards hit Bankrupt in round one with $2,500 on the line and never got a solve. She left with the $1,000 house minimum.
Was this a new episode?
Yes. It's the first of five first-run shows in Wheel Loves L.A. week, taped in May per Andy Nguyen's season schedule.
That's why it opened with two toss-ups and not the Fortune Frenzy speed round from premiere week. Our nightly Wheel page tracks the rest of the week as each show airs.
How often is the bonus round being won right now?
Not often. By our log, players have solved two bonus puzzles in the last 11 first-run shows, going back to Sept. 21.
The previous dated recap in our archive is A CHIC OUTFIT from Sept. 11, another miss. Every night we've covered sits in the results section.
Quick answers
What was the bonus puzzle answer? NOT A QUICK FIX, a Phrase.
Did he win the bonus round? No. The $50,000 envelope went unclaimed, per Andy Nguyen's recap.
How do the at-home giveaways work? Our SPIN ID explainer covers entry windows and rules.
How do people get on the show? The audition guide walks through it, and the how-to-watch guide has start times by city.
What happened on Jeopardy! the same night? The winner and the scores are on the Jeopardy! page.
Sources · Wheel of Fortune with Andy Nguyen — Oct. 5, 2026 recap · Wheel of Fortune Tonight — Oct. 5, 2026 game recap · Andy Nguyen — Season 44 schedule
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