"Dr. Will" is unquestionably the greatest Big Brother player ever. His gameplay has the distinction of being straightforward and deceptive at the same time. Even though he was almost always Public Enemy No. 1, he somehow found a way to trick people into letting him stay — all the way to the finale. He's so slick, the exact same formula almost helped him win again during the All-Stars season. Alas, he fell on his sword and let Mike "Boogie" Malin, the other member of his Chilltown alliance, take the victory.
2 of 15 Robert Voets/CBS
Rob and Amber, The Amazing Race 7 and All-Stars
Love them or hate them, you can't deny that Romber was one of the most formidable teams, and not just physically. Racing like it was Survivor, Rob, who had Amber to keep him in check, remains one of the few Racers who had a grasp on strategy. During a Roadblock on Season 7, he convinced other teams to take the four-hour penalty and join him in not eating the meat because they were ahead — and they all ended up safe. Romber placed second and dominated early in All-Stars, becoming the first team to win the first three legs, before dramatically imploding and getting axed the fourth leg. We just hope Rob's learned how to spell "The Philippines" by now.
3 of 15 Bravo
Richard Blais, Top Chef
With all the bravado and arrogance associated with cheftestants (and chefs in general), it takes balls to admit to choking, which is what Blais did in the Season 4 finale. Because of his molecular gastronomy wizardry, quick-thinking and tongue-in-cheek ingenuity, Blais was tagged as the best cheftestant to never win Top Chef. But he only let the loss motivate him in All-Stars, where he came prepared from the get-go, equipped with drawings of dishes he came up with on the fly. (Just don't show them to Mike Isabella next time, OK?) Blais made it all the way to the final — becoming the only person to have never been eliminated in two seasons — where he finally claimed the title that had eluded him.
4 of 15 Maria Melin/ABC via Getty Images
John Carpenter, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
Whip-smart and cool as a cucumber, Carpenter was the first player to receive the $1 million check from Regis Philbin on the ABC game show. And he did it all without using a single lifeline. Well, as long as you don't count him phoning his father on the last question to boast of his victory. Cockiness — it's the one trait all the best reality TV players have.
5 of 15 CBS/Landov
Richard Hatch, Survivor
So what if he's been in and out of jail for the past three years? He's a villain! And he always used it to his advantage. On Survivor, Hatch pranced around the island nude in order to keep his tribe-mates angry and off their game. One member of the jury even compared Hatch to a snake — a snake that stole the CBS reality hit's first-ever $1 million grand prize.
6 of 15 MTV
Speidi, The Hills
We know, we know — The Hills isn't a competition show. But these two played such great villains, they extended their 15 minutes of fame to a memorably annoying run on NBC's I'm a Celebrity… Get Me Outta Here, where the pair seemingly quit every single episode. On again, off again — just like their marriage! In the end, it was really the viewers who got played.
7 of 15 Trump Prod/Mark Burnett Prod./ The Kobal Collection
Bill Rancic, The Apprentice
A savvy businessman with boy-next-door charm, Bill was the first — and in our mind, best — player to win over Donald Trump on national television. And The Donald's choice was no fluke: Billl remained with the company after his one-year contract ended and, like Mr. Trump, Bill has expanded his interests beyond real estate. He has written two books and now co-stars on his own Style Network reality show with his wife, E! News anchor Giuliana Rancic.
8 of 15 Monry Brinton/CBS
"Boston Rob" Mariano, Survivor
It took him four attempts to actually win Survivor, but Boston Rob finally took home the $1 million on the show's Redemption Island season. But there's a reason it too him so long: Every player saw him as a threat that must be eliminated. Between his ability to manipulate fellow competitors and dominate in physical challenges, Mariano clearly knew how to win the game. Another win: He met his wife Amber on Survivor All-Stars.
9 of 15 Virginia Sherwood/Bravo
Hung Huynh, Top Chef
Hung is a beast. That really is all there is to say. One of the most deserving Top Chef winners ever, Hung didn't dominate Season 3, but his talent, creativity, take-no-prisoners attitude and insane knife skills had every cheftestant quivering in their boots. Besides, you can't hate on a dude who made a Smurf village.
10 of 15 Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images
Janelle, Big Brother
While we certainly can't deny Janelle's eye-candy appeal, she is also the single greatest physical competitor in the game's history, clawing her way to third place on two different seasons. What she lacked in terms of a scheming social game, she more than made up for by simply refusing to lose competitions. In our minds, she's almost certainly the best player to never win the grand prize.
11 of 15 John Paul Filo/CBS
Nat and Kat, The Amazing Race 17
It only took 17 seasons, but The Amazing Race finally crowned its first all-female team winners, and it could not have gone to a more deserving team than these doctors and name-rhyming BFFs. The definition of "calm, cool and collected," they never broke out into hysterics, let alone a sweat, when things weren't going their way or when faced with a tough challenge. Extra points go to Kat, a vegetarian for 22 years, for not complaining, but instead buckling down and eating sheep's head to win the Fast Forward. We love meltdowns, feuds and tears as much as anyone, but there's something to be said for composure and steadiness.
12 of 15 Bravo
Bryan Voltaggio, Top Chef
How stacked was the Emmy-winning Season 6 cast? Only four people won elimination challenges: Kevin, Jen, Michael Voltaggio and his big bro Bryan. Unlike most cheftestants — loud, boisterous and eager to get into shouting matches — Bryan was armed with a quiet, steely determination and let his cooking do all the shouting for him. He came thisclose to beating Michael, but he can take consolation in the fact that he remains the only cheftestant in the whole series to have never been in the bottom of an elimination challenge — a feat that will be very difficult to match.
13 of 15 MontyBrinton/UPN/Landov
Jade, America's Next Top Model
She told producers that her "look is in a different realm, and people don't know how to handle it." Apparently, those "people" were the judges on America's Next Top Model, because she didn't win the show's sixth cycle. No matter, Jade made a name for herself among fans with her sassy style and crazy-inventive vocabulary. (Who's up for some decipheration?)
14 of 15 Oxygen
Tanisha, Bad Girls Club
It’s hard to differentiate yourself on a show where one girl is crazier than the next. But with her original catchphrases ("pop off!") and her no-B.S. attitude, Tanisha managed to do just that. While other girls ended up in tears — or in jail — she scored a hosting gig on the spin-off series Love Games: Bad Girls Need Love Too.
15 of 15 MTV
The Situation, Jersey Shore
Why did The Situation make this list? Because he's a "playa" — perhaps the biggest one ever featured on MTV. (And that's saying something.) The Situation was winning way before Charlie Sheen ever started the trend. It takes a special kind of person to turn being a fist-pumping douchebag into a multi-million dollar career.