Pat Sajak pauses Wheel of Fortune episode after catching contestant in a lie

Here’s a tip for Wheel of Fortune contestants: Don’t lie to Pat Sajak.

Part of Pat Sajak’s job as Wheel of Fortune’s host is ensuring contestants are playing fairly.

During a recent episode, a retired police detective named Lindsey tried to pull a fast one on Pat but was unsuccessful.

Lindsey was competing in the bonus prize puzzle round when she chose the “Phrase” category.

As has always been the case on Wheel of Fortune, Lindsey was given the letters “R S T L N E” before Pat explained that she could choose three consonants of her own and one more vowel.

Lindsey chose “H, D, and S” as her consonants and “O” as her vowel.

Wheel of Fortune contestant lies during a bonus round, but Pat Sajak is onto her

Lindsey didn’t realize that the letter “S” had already been given to her, but Pat did.

The veteran Wheel of Fortune host halted the game as Lindsey’s letters stopped appearing on the screen and asked, “Okay, that third letter was, you said H, D…?”

But instead of being truthful, Lindsey tried to swindle her way out of it, telling Pat, “H, D, C” were her letter choices.

Pat stuck to his guns and tried to get Lindsey to fess up, telling her, “But you did say S, right?”

Lindsey stood her ground with a smile, prompting Pat to press her even further.

“No?” Pat asked. “Hold on. Earlier, did you say S or F? You said ‘H, D…'”

Lindsey repeated her letter choice of “C,” continuing to avoid Pat’s question.

“Oh, so it wasn’t either H or F. And O,” Pat continued. “Now you called an H? I think I got it, alright.”

Ultimately, Lindsey didn’t solve the puzzle, missing out on a $40,000 bonus win.

Wheel of Fortune viewers call out the dishonest contestant on social media

Not only did Pat call out Lindsey on air, but so did some disgruntled Wheel of Fortune viewers, who took to X, formerly Twitter, to express their discontentment.

“This lady just lied on Wheel of Fortune about what letter she said. Pat tried to correct her and asked her to repeat what she said,” wrote one Wheel of Fortune viewer, who even admitted to rewinding the episode to confirm Lindsey’s lie, calling her bonus puzzle loss “instant karma.”

Another viewer took a shot at Lindsey’s former career as a police detective, writing, “UNREAL cop behavior on Wheel of Fortune tonight,” pointing out that Lindsey did choose the letter “S.”

Should Pat retire from Wheel of Fortune early?

Pat has always joked with Wheel of Fortune contestants, but clearly, some viewers feel that the 77-year-old is becoming more annoyed in his final season as host.

As Monsters and Critics previously reported, some believe Pat needs to call it quits before Season 41 ends based on his recent behavior during filming and backstage.

In recent months, Pat has unabashedly corrected incorrect guesses by contestants during filming and, behind the scenes, issued a “stern warning” to a player who seemingly overstepped his bounds with his witty antics.

So, is it time for Pat to hang up his hat and retire earlier than planned? So far, it doesn’t appear that he will leave before his planned exit.

Wheel of Fortune airs weeknights on ABC.