I wouldn't say that you would necessarily lose. I studied a bit before my appearance, but not nearly as intensely as other contestants the same week as me. In four shows, there were two questions that I would not have gotten if I hadn't studied. 2 out of 484. One was about space (which was a weakness of mine) and the other was about Canadian geography (it comes up a lot!). Studying can help, but it's not as important as relaxing and having fun. Remember, a number of factors that you have no control over can affect the outcome of any one game. A good set of categories, a FJ that you don't know, another contestant who gets lucky on DD.Austin Powers wrote:One week is not sufficient time; you should just enjoy the opportunity with the understanding that you'll probably lose.
I would agree about Presidents. I reviewed the Presidents, even though it's an area I felt strong about, because it comes up a lot. I ended up getting zero questions about Presidents. Also, know the major British monarchs and their dates as well. On my show, there was DD about British monarchs, and if the defending champion had answered it correctly, she would have won. Shakespeare comes up a lot as well.