He does have a daily lunch ritual: A slice of cheese pizza, a candy bar, and a bag of chips.
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But is he superstitious with his winning streak?
"I don't have a lucky sock or anything," he told ESPN.
But he also told ESPN the way he picks wagers is personal.
"On Jeopardy I'm kind of famous for making wagers that correspond to my anniversary or my daughter's birthday, or significant times in my life," Holzhauer explained. "I don't know if I call that superstition so much as just a fun thing I want to do up there."
And the fun continued Thursday for the Naperville native. His dad knew James had exceptional math skills when he was just four; there was even an article in the Tribune. And there were other accolades along the way as well.
Holzhauer used those skills to become a sports gambler in Las Vegas, and now a Jeopardy contestant.
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"It's all about your personal risk tolerance," he said. "I'm comfortable risking a lot if I know I have a big edge. Sometimes I don't have that big edge, but on Jeopardy, I'm going to get the Daily Double right a lot more often than I'm not."
Although he's tackled a lot of categories, there are a few he would definitely love to see on the board.
"It's really funny seeing these media depictions of me as an intellectual because I'm a connoisseur of low culture," Holzhauer said. "I would love if a category would come up like WWE catch phrases, or name that guitar solo, but I'm not holding my breath on that sort of thing."
Holzhauer said children's books have really helped him along the way. He said they're engaging, and subjects come at you rapid fire.
So his advice to future contestants, read children's books, practice being under pressure, and practice gambling $30,000 at a time to see if you can stomach it. Holzhauer's winnings are now up to $1,225,987.