'Wheel of Fortune' & Ryan Seacrest Have A Legit Pronunciation Problem

We've officially reached a tipping point on "Wheel of Fortune" with Ryan Seacrest and the pronunciation rule. 

During an episode this week, a contestant went to solve an easy puzzle in the Before/After category: "Love letter of resignation." 

The problem? 

The woman mispronounced "resignation" and Seacrest refused to budge, which meant the woman lost the puzzle and her opponent swooped in for the easy win. Months after Seacrest allowed a contestant to mispronounce "Lubbock," Texas, we're now to the point where the pretty boy host has pivoted back to playing the game by the rules. 

Which way is it going to be, Seacrest? Are we going to play by the rules or not? 

Watch what happened this week: 

I'm not the only one who has noticed Seacrest allow some ‘Wheel’ contestants to get away with it while this poor lady got hammered by the rule. "It's strange because other contestants have mispronounced words and gotten by with it," a Reddit Wheel watcher commented this week. 

Exactly. 

"She asked for the G and solved the puzzle. She knew the word. The pronunciation was weird but intelligible and she knew the G was in there because she called it. They should have given it to her IMO," another Wheel watcher chimed in. 

"Pat used to really over-explain to contestants that they should annunciate slowly and clearly, read and pronounce exactly what is up there, do not add or subtract anything etc. I think Ryan could do more of that."

Exactly, again. 

Seacrest can't make up his mind. 

Case in point, let's go back to early November and this puzzle. Have you ever heard of "Lou-bach" Texas? Seacrest said, eh, close enough, give her the puzzle. 

Based on the chatter on social media, it's possible that Wheel judges have had a conversation with Seacrest to start being strict after some early-career judgment calls that were lambasted on social media. 

"Someone lost a few weeks ago for pronouncing safari wrong. Second a had the incorrect sound. I was shocked they didn’t take it," Wheel watcher Purrrfan wrote Wednesday. 

As long as Seacrest is consistent, that's fine. Trust me, OutKick will be watching.