Price is Right fans suspect they’ve found a ‘loophole’ in an ‘unfair’ game, warn producers to act quickly before new season

GUESSING the prices of popular products and jet-setting trips is no easy feat – just ask any of the contestants featured on The Price Is Right.

Fans of the longest-running game show in US history believe they have discovered a major flaw in what they consider one of the show’s most difficult pricing games, leaving producers scrambling to find solutions.

BREAD ONLINE

The Price Is Right features several prize games, although one game in particular has consistently won one of the show’s top prizes.

3 Strikes debuted on February 12, 1976 and became one of the most difficult games in the series’ history.

The prize is huge, however, with participants competing for a chance to win a huge prize: a brand new car.

The rules of the game are relatively simple: participants are shown eight “baseballs.”

Five of the baseballs are white and labeled with a non-repeating number, which is the price of the car.

The other three balls are red and marked with a giant X to signify a strike.

The eight balls are placed in a rotating drum – resembling a giant baseball – and mixed before a competitor draws the balls one by one from the bag.

If a participant draws a ball with a number, he must then place this ball in one of the five empty spaces which constitute the price of the car.

If the answers are correct, the ball number lights up on the screen and the ball is thrown back.

If the answers are incorrect, a buzzer sounds, a “NO” appears on the screen and the ball must be put back in the bag.

If a competitor hits a ball with a strike, a foghorn sounds and an X marker lights up on the board.

Contestants must continue to draw balls from the bag until they place each number in the correct spot – thus winning the car – or until they get three strikes – which means they have lost the game.

PLAY BALL

After winning the One Bid round, Erik got the chance to play the famous game.

He ran to the stage to greet the show’s host, Drew Carey, who laughed when he saw the contestant’s shirt.

Erik’s shirt read: “HELP…I NEED A MEETING HOME!!”

The advertiser confirmed that they could “probably” help him, before revealing that the grand prize was a Range Rover Evoque S.

Drew then revealed the five numbers, which included: zero, one, two, four and six, as well as the three strikes.

Erik’s first number was “one,” and he correctly placed it in the third box.

He then took a shot that he dropped into the bucket.

Erik then rolled a six and correctly guessed that it would go into the second square.

His luck changed after he drew a two, which he mistakenly placed in first place before drawing it again from the drum.

After shooting another strike, he gave the drum another spin and was able to correctly place the “zero” ball in fifth place.

Erik then rolled “two” again and correctly placed it in fourth place.

After playing with the drum, Erik eventually drew the last available number – a four – and placed it in first place, winning the luxury vehicle.

HOME RUN

The Range Rover was priced at $46,120.

“That’s pretty special,” Drew laughed, as Erik ran toward his prize, jumping up and down and dancing as he went.

Longtime viewers and fans of the show were thrilled to see someone win this tricky game.

“Finally… a well deserved victory on 3 Strikes! Well done Erik!!!!!” wrote one viewer.

“FINALLY!!!!!! I was eagerly waiting for someone to win Three Strikes because it’s been over four years since we last won in October 2016,” another viewer commented.

“LOL I love it when he does the Carlton dance from Fresh Prince,” wrote another viewer.

FALSE BALL

However, not all viewers were thrilled with Erik’s victory, with some commenting that Three Strikes was “the worst” game of the series.

“In my opinion this is the worst game they have,” one viewer commented.

“This is the right price, not the solution: let’s make a deal,” wrote another user.

“The worst Price is Right game is hands down ‘Three Strikes,’” another user tweeted.

“You have an awesome, super cool, expensive prize that you are virtually guaranteed NOT to WIN.

“This game is my least favorite…” they added.

YOU ARE OUTSIDE

“This game has a flaw that can cause the win rate to skyrocket,” one viewer revealed.

“Balls that don’t hit have numbers on them,” they continued.

“You have to feel the ball to find a number before you lift it.”

“The only concern I have with… letting the competitor place (the balls) in the bag themselves is that they could somehow mark the balls… to make the hits easier to identify,” wrote another user, apparently finding a flaw in the game.

“The player cheated,” one viewer claimed, although there was no evidence to support his claim.

“Norms and practices would never allow them to cheat like you said,” one user wrote.

“It’s also pointless because 3 Strikes is a difficult game,” they added.

3 Strikes may not be intentionally rigged, but there’s nothing stopping contestants from peeking inside the baseball drum or trying to guess the numbers – and strikes – on each ball.