Georgia Highlands Cartersville student competes on the ‘Wheel of Fortune’

Jessica Lee

Sam Philliber, Cartersville student, won $3,100 and a new Ford Fiesta on the "Wheel of Fortune." Photo by Stephanie Corona
Sam Philliber, Cartersville student, won $3,100 and a new Ford Fiesta on the “Wheel of Fortune.” Photo by Stephanie Corona

In December, GHC student Sam Philliber won 3,100 dollars and a 2015 Ford Fiesta after competing on the popular game show, Wheel of Fortune.

Philliber, a business management major in his second year at Highlands, decided to audition for the show after seeing an ad during the summer. A month after applying, he was invited to a closed audition in Atlanta.

The audition narrowed the contestants down to twelve applicants. “A quarter of those twelve make it on the show and I was one,” said Philliber when describing the lengthy selection process.

Two weeks after the audition, he received a letter. “It was an envelope with the Wheel of Fortune logo on it, so I knew I had made it,” he said. After calling a number included with the letter, he was given show dates and then had to arrange his trip to Los Angeles.

Philliber made arrangements with his family to fly out to Los Angeles to film the show. Though they were expected to pay for travel expenses, the show’s minimum winnings are 1,000 dollars, “so it kinda comes back to you,” Philliber explained.

Cartersville Campus Dean Leslie Johnson made sure to watch the episode after hearing that one of her former students was appearing on the show. Johnson said, “It was very exciting to see how well he did.”