An underdog wins Survivor: Gabon

He just might be one of the unlikeliest winners of Survivor —a 57-year-old high school Physics teacher who did not seem athletic and seemed to have zero killer instinct. But he showed everyone just what he’s made of by flying under the radar for a while, strategizing when it mattered, crafting fake immunity idols, and winning not one, not two, not three, but five challenges in a row in the last few days leading to the finals.

Bob Crowley of Portland, Maine is the sole Survivor of Survivor: Gabon, the 17th season of the Emmy award -winning show. Aired locally on Q-11, Survivor had the season’s castaways marooned in Gabon, Africa.

During the final weeks of the show, most at the tribe and those that have been voted off have come to agree that Bob is the best among them and he has been widely regarded as probably the only one among the castaways who can actually survive alone in the jungle. His five-win streak at the challenges ties the show’s standing record, host Jeff Probst said during the live reunion show. 

Come finals time, some alliances had crumbled and the remaining players seemed to flip flop on their decisions. Then the Final Three — Bob together with Susie, a 47-year-old homemaker from Iowa, and Jessica “Sugar” Kiper, a 29-year-old pinup model — were left to plead their case to the jury to win the million-dollar prize. The jury was made up of the last seven Castaways who were voted off.

During the final Tribal Council, Bob told the jury, “I don’t think I outwitted you. I don’t think I outplayed you. The only thing I did was outlast you.” Well, most members of the jury obviously thought Bob the better player and he got the majority of the votes.

The results of the final vote were announced by Probst in Hollywood, during a live post-game, reunion special. Bob was the second-oldest person this season and the show’s oldest winner.

The viewers loved him so much he also won an additional $100,000 for being the Player of the Season.