What It's Like To Win Fast Money On Family Feud
"Family Feud" has been a game show staple since making its ABC debut on July 12, 1976, adapting over time with new hosts while keeping the show format relatively the same. Each episode features two families facing off and rushing to guess what popular answers the general public has provided in a wide array of surveys. Each successful ring of the bell and answer on the board gets contestants closer to winning big cash or sometimes a new car (via Southern Living).
Straightforward rules; charismatic hosts like Steve Harvey, Richard Dawson, and John O'Hurley; and the countless families that have played over the decades have cemented its status of being one of the most popular game shows in the U.S. The excitement of the family face-off is all fine and dandy, but when trying to take home the big win, it all comes down to the final Fast Money round.
What does the Fast Money round entail?
Going head-to-head with another family on "Family Feud," nervously shouting out the first thing that comes to mind for an obscure survey prompt about bananas, and cheering your way to victory will not immediately guarantee the large cash prize. The real challenge comes with the final round of Fast Money, where one contestant answers a series of rapid-fire questions, hoping to say the most popular answer for maximum points.
Another family member then answers those same questions with the difficult task of not repeating their partner's answers and still uncovering a popular response that will help the team hit 200 points to win a prize of $20,000, an amount that has varied over the years. That means with the success of a five-game winning streak, a family that dominates the Fast Money round could lead to a prize of $100,000 (per the "Family Feud" website). As if 20 seconds of random survey prompts in front of an audience and the thought of being on television wasn't stressful enough!
Unable to hit that 200 point-marker? Families will still walk away with $5 per point earned in the Fast Money round (via Thought Catalog) that could at the very least pay for a nice celebration dinner once the episode airs.
What it's really like to play Family Feud
During an AMA on Reddit detailing personal behind-the-scenes insights of his family's four-episode stretch on "Family Feud" in 2013, contestant Cole Simmons noted that families receive winnings 90 days after the show airs, which can be eight months after taping as it was in his experience. For convenience, winnings are divided five ways automatically. "It will be subject to income tax ... If you get the car, they just get you a car and you figure it out. If you take the cash equivalent, that is divided."
As for a few fun glimpses into the odd world of "Family Feud" Simmons confirms that you must cheer and clap for each family member's answer, even if it is downright dreadful. In recent years, Steve Harvey has perfected comedic responses to every bad, confused, silly, and absurd answer thrown out from energetic families. There is definitely a more raunchy tone to answers these days, and Harvey's reactions have been a driving force for episode clips to go viral on social media platforms (via Eternal Lifestyle).
The humor and positivity that surrounds each episode could very well be the secret recipe for a game show that has successfully stood the test of time.