Ticketless: Extra Innings
The following is bonus content from my book, Ticketless: How Sneaking Into The Super Bowl And Everything Else (Almost) Held My Life Together.
The Spin-Move: A Chronology
*Numbers 4, 5, 13, 15, 21, 26, 28, 30, and 31 are not included in Ticketless*
1. August 13, 2005: Cardinals 5, Cubs 2. Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL.
Get-in Price: Approximately $100. Scalpers were offering tickets for $150, but Dad was a good negotiator.
The start of this game was rain-delayed by two hours and 42 minutes. That was fine with us; we had more time to take in Wrigley Field.
Albert hit his 33rd home run of the season into the basket in right field, and the ball stayed there the rest of the game. Chris Carpenter tossed a complete game, striking out eight. The Cards went to 74-43 and increased their lead in the division to 10.5 games. BOXSCORE.
Dad was … Dad. When we got to the bleachers in the seventh inning, we sat behind a guy in a Cubs hat with the tag still on, which I guess was some kind of fashion statement at the time. Dad didn’t get it, and that tag just … kept … bothering him. When he mentioned it to a fellow Cardinals fan sitting next to us, he offered Dad $10 to yank the tag off.
Dad took the money, pulled the tag off, then shrugged, apologized, and gave the money to the guy with the hat. “Here, you can buy a new one,” Dad said. “I just couldn’t stand that thing flopping around.”
I had never caught a foul ball or a home run (and still haven’t; I shit you not, I currently despise my foul ball virginity more than I did my actual virginity during college). After the game, I made Dad angry when I wandered off to retrieve Albert’s homer from the basket without telling him where I was going. The ball was gone by the time I got there.
2. March 19, 2010: Gonzaga 67, Florida St. 60. HSBC Arena, Buffalo, NY.
Get-in Price: Approximately $150 from a scalper.
No matter how many win-probability charts tell me a four-point lead with two minutes left is a win 85 percent of the time, it’s hard to convince myself to feel comfortable in that situation in a Tournament game.
The 8-seed Zags led throughout this one, including 35-19 at halftime, but somehow, Florida St. had two free throws with 1:37 remaining that would’ve cut the lead to two. They missed both, and the Zags held on to advance to the second round. The Zags didn’t get a single point from their bench in this one, although all five starters nearly hit double digits.
During the Syracuse-Vermont game that followed, Al and I went down to the Zags’ seating section and met a little-known Gonzaga freshman, who was redshirting that year: Kelly Olynyk. He went on to be pretty good. Once Syracuse had the game in hand, Al and I decided to leave so we could catch up with our buddies at the bar.
I regret leaving before it ended. I hate leaving games early, and never have when the decision to stay or go has been entirely up to me. What if you miss a historic comeback, a highlight dunk, or … even a nice defensive rotation that forces a shot-clock violation?
A ticket to a game is sacred. If you can’t commit to staying until the game ends, give the ticket to someone who can. No one goes to a movie, sits through the first hour and 15 minutes, then leaves so they can beat the traffic. I honor the spin-move as even more sacred than a ticket. Spin-moving is such an incredible privilege that I owe it — to everyone who’d love to be at the game but couldn’t make it or afford a ticket — to enjoy the hell out of every second.
3. October 30, 2010: Nebraska 31, Mizzou 17. Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, NE.
Get-in Price: Bruce paid $80 for his ticket.
The undefeated, No. 6 Tigers had beaten top-ranked Oklahoma the previous week. But Roy Helu Jr. went nuts for No. 14 Nubs in this one. He ripped a 66-yard touchdown run early in the first quarter, a 73-yarder late in the first, and he had a 53-yard TD in the third. He carried 28 times for … holy shit … 307 yards. The Huskers led 24-0 after the first, but the Tigers teased us with some all-too-dangerous hope by narrowing the deficit to 24-14 halfway through the third. That was as close as they got. BOXSCORE.
We were exhausted on the drive home, and depressed about the Tigers’ title hopes having evaporated. But the fraternity was throwing a Halloween party that night, so Bruce had the pedal to the metal. I got high in the passenger seat and we put the Blues game on the radio. Jay McClement, my favorite player at the time, scored his first and only NHL hat trick, and I felt like the Sports Gods had decided to make up for the Mizzou game.
4. December 22, 2010: Missouri 75, Illinois 64. Scottrade Center, St. Louis, MO. *Not included in Ticketless*
Get-in Price: This is a pure estimate … $70.
Every year before Christmas, Mizzou plays Illinois in St. Louis in the “Braggin’ Rights” game. Half the arena wears black and gold, the other half wears orange, and it’s always a great environment. It’s particularly rowdy when both teams are good — and on this date, the Tigers were ranked ninth in the country, while Illinois was No. 21.
Like me, Connor held a “student usher” position during his junior and senior years of high school. That night, I asked him to let me know if he was working a gate. He told me he’d been assigned a turnstile at the main entrance, so I called a friend and told him I had a way to get into the game for free.
I wrote in my journal, “Got in when Connor ‘accidentally’ forgot to scan our tickets.” (I’m guessing we brought used, generic-looking tickets as decoys.)
The game was tied at halftime, and after a back-and-forth 13 minutes, was tied again at 52 with 7:00 remaining. Things got crazy toward the end. With exactly 60 seconds left, Illinois had the ball, down by two. Marcus Denmon stole the inbounds pass, which led to a Missouri layup. Illinois’ Brandon Paul then missed two free throws, but the Illini stole the ball off the rebound and D.J. Richardson knocked down a 3 to cut the lead to one.
The Tigers got a fast-break layup, on which Mike Tisdale was called for an intentional foul. Lawrence Bowers made both free throws and the Tigers scored on the subsequent inbounds play to complete a six-point trip that put the game away. BOXSCORE.
5. December 28, 2010: Blues 3, Chicago 1. Scottrade Center, St. Louis, MO. *Not Included in Ticketless*
Get-in Price: Another pure guess … $60.
I had a friend, who was already on the inside, open an exit-only door for me.
The Blues have something of a tradition of playing post-Christmas games at home. It’s usually a hot ticket — and was even more so against the defending Cup champions and long-time rivals, with the Blues having started the season 18-12-5. Someone named Jake Dowell scored for Chicago late in the first, but Vladimir Sobotka tied it early in the second, then Brad Boyes and Brad Winchester (a goon who somehow potted 10 goals that year) scored on Marty Turco in the third. BOXSCORE.
6. January 5, 2011: Russia 5, Canada 3. HSBC Arena, Buffalo, NY.
Get-in Price: Al and I paid $200 each, before selling out.
Canada, playing as heavy favorites with an almost entirely Canadian crowd cheering them on, built a 3-0 lead and the atmosphere was starting to feel more like a coronation of Canada’s global superiority in the sport than a hockey game.
Then Russia scored five straight, including a wicked one-timer from future-Blue Vladimir Tarasenko.
Canadian hockey fans take the World Juniors absurdly seriously — it’s their annual opportunity to show the world that hockey belongs to Canada. I kept a copy of the next day’s Toronto Sun. The front page included a picture of distraught, almost-crying Canadian players and the headline, “Stunned.”
As it became clear Canada was going down, I thought we’d see a vicious, angry crowd, booing and throw bottles of Molson and Labatt Blue on the ice. But the fans applauded both teams at the end, then filed out quietly.
7. February 7, 2011: kansas 103, Mizzou 86. Allen Fieldhouse, Lawrence, ks.
Get-in Price: I ran into three friends from the fraternity, who had organized a road trip of their own, at this game. They each paid $300.
I remembered No. 2 kansas as having dominated from the opening tip, but now that I see the box score, the No. 19 Tigers had 20-14 lead early and trailed just 46-42 after the first half. kU pulled away in the second. The Morris twins combined for 38 points and kU shot 11/19 from behind the arc.
Some dude in the Mizzou section kept heckling kansas’s Tyshawn Taylor by yelling “Tyshawn Turnover” every time he had the ball. He only turned it over twice, unfortunately.
8. July 2, 2011: Kvitová def. Sharapova 6-3, 6-4. Centre Court, London, England.
Get-in Price: I looked online before I left for London. I didn’t look very hard, and I don’t remember it clearly, but the number 2,000 pounds (approximately $3200 at the time) sticks out in my mind.
Sharapova was the 5-seed and going for her fourth Grand Slam and second Wimbledon title. Kvitová, the 8-seed, was 21 years old, in her first Slam final, and a heavy underdog.
Trailing 3 games to 2 in the first set, Sharapova double-faulted twice in a row to give Kvitová a 4-2 lead. Kvitová took the first set, then stayed ahead throughout the second. She won the first of her two (so far) Wimbledon Singles titles with an ace down the T.
9. October 20, 2011: Rangers 2, Cardinals 1. Busch Stadium, St. Louis, MO.
Get-in Price: My mom, not knowing what I was up to, offered to give me $300 to buy a ticket from a scalper.
The tickets Mom won in her office raffle were in her company’s right-field suite, which posed another problem after I spin-moved: I had to spin-move the suite, too. Connor left the suite, making sure the usher saw him leave, and gave me his ticket. I used it to get in. A few minutes later, Connor came back and said, “Hey, I left my ticket inside. You remember me, right?”
This one was scoreless — an old-fashioned pitcher’s duel between Jaime Garcia for the Cardinals and Colby Lewis for the Rangers — until Allen Craig drove in a run with a single in the bottom of the seventh. Cardinals closer Jason Motte entered in the ninth, but gave up two straight singles, then a sacrifice fly, which tied the game and moved a runner to third with one out. BOXSCORE.
I called in to the postgame radio show to argue Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, in that scenario, should have intentionally walked Michael Young (who hit .338 that year) to set up a double play. Adrian Beltre was on deck. Instead, they pitched to Young, who drove in the winning run (and tied the World Series at one game apiece) with a sac fly.
10. October 23, 2011: Rangers 4, Cardinals 0. The Ballpark in Arlington, Arlington, TX.
Get-in Price: The day of the game, my friend Charlie bought an upper-deck ticket from an “authorized dealer” that operated out of a gas station for $400.
The night before this game, as Charlie and I were driving from Columbia, MO to Dallas, we stopped at an Applebee’s to watch Game 3. Albert hit three homers and I thought, “Well, Dad — I guess a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and then.” Had he still been alive, he probably would have predicted it.
We got to Dallas; the Cards were up 2-1 in the series. But Derek Holland threw 8 and 1/3 innings of two-hit, shutout ball to even the series. The Rangers scored a run in the first on a Josh Hamilton double, and Mike Napoli hit a three-run homer in the sixth. BOXSCORE.
11. October 28, 2011: Cardinals 6, Rangers 2. Busch Stadium, St. Louis, MO.
Get-in Price: I remember St. Louis police cracking down on scalping (which is technically illegal) before Game 7. Apparently, there were reports of folks selling paperclips for $500, and then “giving away” a ticket to the game to avoid legal consequences.
Game 6 is the one everyone remembers; some have even called it one of the greatest games of all time. The truth is, it was a poorly pitched, sloppy, error-filled game — until the bottom of the ninth inning. With the Cardinals trailing the series 3-2, two outs, down to their last strike, St. Louis-born-and-raised David Freese (who had dropped two pop-ups in the game) hit a game-tying triple.
Again down to their last strike in the 10th, Lance Berkman tied it with a single. Freese won it in the 11th with a solo homer.
I considered spinning this game. Deciding against it still haunts me. I had a test early the next day, but the real reason I didn’t go is that I figured if the Cardinals lost, I wouldn’t have wanted to see the Rangers celebrate on our field. And if they won, I would spin Game 7, which I figured would be more dramatic anyway. Little did I know I’d miss three of the greatest moments in baseball history.
As the professor was handing out the test packets the morning after Game 6, I raised my hand. “Professor, probably half the class is from the St. Louis area, and the Cardinals played a pretty important game last night … I don’t see how any of us could really have studied effectively. What do you say about postponing the test until Monday?”
He looked away and responded, “Does anyone else have a question?” Another student raised his hand. “Well, this is probably a dumb question but … ” and then the professor cut him off. “There’s no such thing as a dumb question — except the one about postponing a test for baseball.”
At the end of the semester, my grade dangling between a B and a B+, I sent this in an email:
“I truly believe that my grade on test #2 was significantly worse than it would have been had it been taken at any time other than 9:00 a.m. the day after the greatest baseball game of all-time was played. I was half-joking in class when I asked you to push the test back, because I knew the logistics of it would be hard to manage, but nonetheless, my nerves were frayed after that game, and even though I had studied beforehand, almost everything I had studied went right out the window with all the drama of that Game 6. And after the game, I certainly wasn't in any position to continue studying.”
Unbeknownst to me, he had announced on the class website that he would curve the final exam; it gave me my B+. He responded to my email, “Trevor, read the announcement I posted. I think you will find it enlightening. Then ponder the following quote: ‘It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt.’ Best wishes for the holidays."
I thought about it for a while, then responded, “Professor, my deepest, most sincere apologies for not noticing your announcement. A quote for you to ponder: ‘If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all.’ Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah.”
Anyway, at Game 7, Connor and I watched from the standing-room-only area along the first-base line. The Rangers scored two in the top of the first, but Freese hit a two-run double in the bottom half to tie it. Chris Carpenter locked it down from there, Arthur Rhodes and Octavio Dotel (I had forgotten they were on that team!) were solid in relief, and the Cardinals scratched across runs in the third, fifth, and seventh to win their 11th World Series.
The Blues lost 3-1 in Calgary.
12. November 5, 2011: LSU 9, Alabama 6 (OT). Bryant-Denny Stadium, Tuscaloosa, AL.
Get-in Price: One of the guys who with us — the guy who was worried about his “future” — bought a ticket for $350.
These two teams were the best in the country because their defenses were otherworldly, and they sure showed it. Neither team scored a touchdown. Both offenses were intercepted twice. Alabama missed four field goals, though, and that was the difference. Early in the fourth quarter, ‘Bama quarterback AJ McCarron lobbed a ball to tight end Michael Williams at the goal line. Williams appeared to make the catch, but as he and LSU safety Eric Reid tumbled to the ground, Reid came away with the ball for an interception.
In overtime, Alabama missed a 52-yard field goal attempt, then LSU made a chip-shot to win. The Crimson Tide would get revenge a few months later by beating the Bayou Bengals 21-0 in the championship game. GAME SUMMARY (add 5 to that attendance tally).
13. December 3, 2011: Chicago 5, Blues 2. Scottrade Center, St. Louis, MO. *Not Included in Ticketless*
Get-in Price: Another pure guess: $50.
My friend Eric’s girlfriend at the time went to the University of Illinois, and we drove there on a Friday evening. Gonzaga played the Illini the following afternoon, and we attended that game — with tickets. Then we sped from Champaign to St. Louis, arriving at Scottrade Center just before puck drop.
Connor was taking tickets at the main entrance, and when we approached, we held out tickets to the basketball game. Connor pretended to scan them and we walked in.
David Perron, in his first game back after missing 97 because of a concussion, opened the scoring in an electric Saturday night, St. Louis-Chicago environment. But Marian Hossa scored two for Chicago, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Sharp each scored one, and Michael Frolik added an empty-netter. BOXSCORE.
14. January 21, 2012: Blues 4, Sabres 2. Scottrade Center, St. Louis, MO +Unsuccessful spin-move+
Get-in Price: Tickets were going for about $80 on the street before the game.
Bruce and I watched all of about 10 minutes of this game from our seats in the arena before we were kicked out. We watched the rest at a hotel bar across the street while Connor, in his seat, watched alone.
The Blues were real good that year; the Sabres were not. Mike Weber scored for Buffalo late in the first, then B.J. Crombeen, David Perron, and David Backes rattled off three straight for the Blues. Tyler Myers scored on the power play with a minute remaining to create some drama, but Backes scored into an empty net 25 seconds later to end it. BOXSCORE.
15. February 4, 2012: Mizzou 74, kansas 71. Mizzou Arena, Columbia, MO. *Not included in Ticketless*
Get-in Price: My friend Eric had his mom and brother in town that weekend. Eric bought each of them a ticket for $200 apiece.
This game took place the night before my Super Bowl spin. I had a student ticket, of course, and part of my code said that I couldn’t sell a ticket, then spin-move. I didn’t want to profit from my hobby. Instead, I gave my ticket to Connor, who had never been to a Mizzou-kU game. (He also had to take my student ID, although the ushers who check student IDs look at them for all of half a second.)
Cody, who would come with me to Indianapolis the next morning, spun first. On the left side of the main entrance were the ticket takers and turnstiles. On the right, the box office and a sole turnstile and ticket taker. Between them were metal barriers that came up to our hips. Those barriers were all that separated the concourse full of ticket holders from the lobby of the arena, which anyone — ticketed or not — had access to.
The only person who even resembled an authority figure (I think he was an employee in the athletic department) was a man in a Mizzou collared shirt, standing with one hand in his pocket and the other on an ice cream cone. Cody ducked under the barrier and jogged left, into the masses. No one noticed.
I went over the barrier, just to mix things up, but that almost cost me: I clipped the rail with my back leg and it went down with a clang. I speed-walked into the crowd and didn’t look back.
Jim and our friend Roman were planning to go after me, but I had drawn attention to the area. They waited a few minutes and moved farther down; the barrier didn’t quite reach the pillar that separated the concourse from the lobby. To bridge the gap, arena security had “installed” a trashcan. Jim and Roman looked around, saw that no one was looking, moved the trashcan aside, and walked in.
I’ve helped my brother get jobs, counseled him through girlfriend drama, and treated him to pumpkin muffins from the St. Louis Bread Company. But I think he’s more grateful that I talked him into coming to Columbia for this game and gave him my ticket than for anything else I’ve done for him. It was the last Mizzou home game against kansas, and because the Tigers were so bad while Connor was in school, it wound up being his last chance to see a full, raucous Mizzou Arena crowd for a long time.
The No. 4 Tigers trailed No. 8 kansas 71-63 with about two minutes left. Marcus Denmon proceeded to stick his foot up kU’s ass. He drove for a three-point play, then knocked down back-to-back 3s to put the Tigers up 72-71. When the Tigers got the ball back with 40 seconds to go, kansas inexplicably let 18 seconds run off the clock before fouling. kU had a chance to tie it with a 3 at the buzzer, but Elijah Johnson’s shot didn’t even hit the rim.
16. February 5, 2012: Giants 21, Patriots 17. Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN.
Get-in Price: Face value on the ticket I forged was $900.
I wanted to spin-move this game to add “Super Bowl” to my résumé, but I realized that wasn’t a good reason. I’m glad I did it, but I have no interest in attending another Super Bowl. It’s not enough “sporting” and too much “event.”
Tom Brady was whistled for intentional grounding in the end zone, which resulted in a safety to give the Giants the rare 2-0 lead. The Pats scored late in the second quarter and early in the third on an Aaron Hernandez touchdown reception to take a 17-9 lead, but the Giants added two field goals in the third quarter. They got the ball on their own 12 with 3:46 left, down 17-15. On the first play of the drive, Eli Manning connected with Mario Manningham down the left sideline for 38 yards.
This game doesn’t have the same cachet as the 2008 Giants-Patriots Super Bowl, and this catch wasn’t as incredible as David Tyree’s grab against his helmet. But given the circumstances, it has to be one of the 10 greatest catches in NFL history.
The Giants scored to take the lead when the Patriots (smartly) let Ahmad Bradshaw walk into the end zone with 59 seconds left. Bradshaw (smartly) wanted to take a knee at the 1 so his team could run more clock, but his momentum carried him in. The Patriots threw a Hail Mary at the end, and Rob Gronkowski had a look at the deflection, but his dive didn’t extend far enough. BOXSCORE.
17. February 25, 2012: kansas 87, Mizzou 86 (OT). Allen Fieldhouse, Lawrence, kS.
Get-in Price: An estimate based on the previous Allen Fieldhouse spin: $300
Crowds at afternoon games generally seem less rowdy, but Allen Fieldhouse was pretty damn loud on this Saturday afternoon.
The No. 3 Tigers and No. 4 kansas were playing the 267th and last (for now) “Border War” game. The Tigers led 58-39 early in the second half but kU’s Thomas Robinson tied it with a three-point play with 16 seconds to go. Phil Pressey drove into the lane in the dying seconds. Robinson blocked the shot, and I argued later that because he knocked Pressey in the face after the block, the officials were correct not to call a foul.
I’ve been convinced otherwise: A legal block entails maintaining enough body control not to commit a foul all the way to the ground. Pressey should have gone to the line. Oh well, I’m over it.
In overtime, the Tigers took an 86-85 lead on a Marcus Denmon jumper with 12 seconds left, but kU knocked down two free throws on the other end with eight seconds left. WHY WHY WHY did Michael Dixon lollygag up the court when he caught the ensuing inbounds pass? Once he passed half court, Dixon continued to screw around and the Tigers didn’t get a shot off before the clock expired. (The meaningless, clearly-after-the-buzzer shot they put up did drop … a cruel twist of the knife.)
This loss stung. We were on such a high after the four of us got in, then watched the Tigers, on the road in an insane environment, build a 19-point lead. Then it all fell apart.
Fuck, man. Maybe I’m not over it.
18. May 17, 2012: Boca Juniors 1, Fluminense 0. La Bombonera, Buenos Aires, Argentina +Unsuccessful spin-move+
Get-in Price: The ticket I bought for the final cost $400, but this game was the quarterfinal. Tickets were probably going for about $200.
A disaster of a spin-move, but a good win for Boca in the first leg of their Copa de Libertadores match against Fluminense, from Rio de Janeiro. In the 51st minute, Pablo Mouche corralled a pass at the edge of the box, streaking to the goalie’s right. He put it off the far post and in for the only goal of the game.
In the game I actually attended, the first leg of the final, Boca took a 1-0 lead in the 72nd minute on a goal by Facundo Roncaglia after a net-mouth scramble off a corner kick. But Corinthians, who play in São Paulo, tied it on a breakaway goal by Romarinho 12 minutes later. Corinthians won 2-0 in the second leg to win the Copa.
19. October 19, 2012: Giants 5, Cardinals 0. Busch Stadium, St. Louis, MO.
Get-in Price: Pure estimate … $100
I remember folks using the term “devil magic” to describe how the Cardinals seemingly couldn’t be killed. They had miraculously won the World Series the previous year. In the 2012 NLDS, in a do-or-die Game 5, they came back from down six to win. (They trailed by two going into the ninth … and scored four.)
Going into this game, they led the NLCS 3-1 and it looked like a foregone conclusion: They would advance to the World Series and (thanks to their devil magic) win it again.
The Cards had runners on second and third with nobody out in the bottom of the second. Barry Zito proceeded to load the bases, then induced a double play off the bat of Cardinals starter Lance Lynn. Zito ended up going 7 and 2/3 scoreless. BOXSCORE.
In the top of the fourth, Lynn fielded a chopper off the bat of Hunter Pence, but his throw to second base for a force-out hit the bag and caromed into center field to give the Giants their first run. With two outs, a full count and the bases loaded (still having given up only the one run), Lynn yielded a two-run single to Brandon Crawford. The Cardinals didn’t threaten the rest of the way, then were blown out in Games 6 and 7.
20. February 2, 2013: Indiana 81, Michigan 73. Assembly Hall, Bloomington, IN.
Get-in Price: I found a ticket stub on the ground during this game. Face value was $36, although the cheapest ticket I could have bought before the game probably was closer to $100.
When it comes to eliciting eardrum-hurting eruptions from the crowd, the game of basketball has an advantage. On a goal in hockey, you have to reserve excitement for a split-second because it can be nullified by goalie interference or an offsides review. On a touchdown in football, you have to reserve excitement to make sure no holding flags were thrown. Baseball has home runs, but whereas some fans know a home run right off the bat, others don’t until they see it land.
Basketball has the three-pointer that splashes home, clear to everyone in the building, and can’t be called back. You can go crazy right away.
The No. 3 Hoosiers made seven threes on this night. They jumped out to a 15-point lead on No. 1 Michigan in the first 10 minutes, but Michigan was within four at halftime and two early in the second. Then Indiana went on a 9-0 run and owned at least a two-possession lead the rest of the way. For Michigan, Trey Burke had 25 and Tim Hardaway Jr. had 18. For Indiana, Cody Zeller scored 19 and Victor Oladipo had 15.
It seemed like the crowd was standing the whole game, and it was brutally hot and humid in the building. It was awesome.
21. October 19, 2013: Mizzou 36, Florida 17. Faurot Field, Columbia, MO *Not included in Ticketless*
Get-in Price: I probably could’ve bought a student ticket for about $30.
This one really should count as a half-spin. It was an 11:00 a.m. kickoff, and the No. 14 Tigers were, surprisingly, undefeated. They had beaten Georgia the previous week, but we still weren’t sure they were for real. Either way, it was an exciting time to be a Mizzou football fan, and I tailgated hard. My friend and I had moved out of the fraternity house, but it was still Tailgate Central and we got there at 6:30 a.m. with a miniature grill, weed cookies, and a 12-pack of beer each.
It had been cold that morning, so I wore four layers. By the end of the first quarter, the sun had come out, so I went into a stall in the bathroom to readjust. When I left the stall, a policeman took me by the shoulder and escorted me to the exit.
He could tell that I was drunk, but he also was, for some reason, positive that I was planning to streak onto the field … because I had some t-shirts in my hands, I guess? I couldn’t convince him otherwise, and he demanded I surrender my student ID and ticket stub. Then he walked me to a taxi and told me to go home.
I wasn’t about to miss the rest of the game. Once the door to the taxi closed, I told the driver, “Take me to the other side of the stadium.” He did, and I walked up to the gate. Only a few of the ticket takers were still in place, and they were turned toward the TVs on the concourse, watching the game. I walked past them and didn’t look back.
When I made it back to the student section and found my friends, one asked, “Where the hell have you been?”
“Just went for a little walk,” I said, “to calm the nerves.”
The Tigers led early, the No. 22 Gators returned the second half kickoff for a touchdown to cut the lead to 13-10, but the Tigers scored on their next drive and never looked back, either.
22. January 11, 2014: Seahawks 23, Saints 15. CenturyLink Field, Seattle, WA.
Get-in Price: It poured on the day of the game, which brought prices down, but I still remember them costing about $200.
The Seahawks were the 1-seed in the NFC at 13-3 and the Saints were one hell of a strong 6-seed, at 11-5.
The Seahawks reached the Super Bowl in 2006 and had made the playoffs four times since, but the franchise had never won it all and their fans knew this was their best shot. In this divisional round game against New Orleans, they were up 16-0 at halftime on three field goals and a touchdown. The Saints scored early in the fourth and added the two-point conversion to make it 16-8, but with less than three minutes to go, Marshawn Lynch took a handoff and cut outside, down the left sideline and into the end zone for a 31-yard TD. It was only his second-most famous fourth-quarter-of-a-playoff-game-against-New-Orleans-touchdown run.
The Saints scored with 26 seconds left and recovered the onside kick to put a scare into the hometown crowd, but they ran out of time.
23. April 13, 2014: Bubba Watson (280). Augusta National, Augusta, GA.
Get-in Price: Badges for The Masters usually cost more than $1000, but on the morning of that year’s final round, I could have gotten one for $508.
Tiger Woods withdrew from the tournament after back surgery, and Phil Mickelson missed the cut, but the leaderboard entering the final round still had some star power. Watson, looking for his second Green Jacket, was tied with the up-and-coming Jordan Spieth at -5. Rickie Fowler and Miguel Ángel Jiménez were at -3, and Augusta National fan favorite Fred Couples was tied for 10th at -1.
Spieth had a two-stroke lead after he birdied seven, but on eight, he bogeyed, Watson birdied, and we had a tie ballgame. Heading to 12, Watson had a one-shot lead. Spieth’s tee shot on the par 3 came up short and rolled into the water, foreshadowing similar problems on that hole in subsequent years. Watson extended his lead to three strokes with a birdie on 13 and cruised home, winning at -8 to Spieth’s -5.
24. May 8, 2014: Bruins 1, Canadiens 0 (OT). Bell Centre, Montreal, QC.
Get-in Price: My buddy paid $230 for his upper-bowl ticket.
The two best goalies in hockey lived up to their reputations in this Game 4 of the second round. The Habs led 2-1 in the series, but it felt like the Bruins had the better of the chances throughout regulation; Jarome Iginla hit the crossbar and Carl Soderberg hit the post in the first period for the B’s, although the final shots-on-goal tally was nearly even.
Early in OT, the game ended on a goofy play. Johnny Boychuk ripped a shot from the right point that Carey Price, in net for the Canadiens, sticked into the glass behind his net. It bounced back in front and Soderberg shot a quick backhand that deflected off Montreal’s Lars Eller’s stick … then off Canadiens defenseman Mike Weaver’s glove, and into Price’s right pad. The puck settled on the ice, and the Bruins’ Matt Fraser poked it home.
I’m sure some folks drew sweeping conclusions about how the Bruins “showed mental toughness” or something … because a rubber disk bounced off a pane of glass and three other moving parts at just the right angle.
25. February 18, 2015: Duke 92, North Carolina 90 (OT). Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham, NC.
Get-in Price: An hour before tip, for the hell of it, I negotiated with a scalper and got him down to $550 before saying (untruthfully), “Sorry man, a silly basketball game just doesn’t mean that much to me.”
North Carolina great Antawn Jamison stood next to me, and the ACC Digital Network opened its telecast by showing him and saying, “9,000-plus here at Cameron Indoor Stadium, many legends on hand.” In my Zags hat and royal blue shirt, looking nervous as hell, you can see me, too.
Fourth-ranked Duke got out to a 28-16 lead midway through the first half, and had a comfortable seven-point lead at halftime. But No. 15 UNC had two big runs in the second half and were up 77-67 late in the game, in part due to three of the highest-leaping dunks I’ve ever seen, by J.P. Tokoto.
The Blue Devils chipped away in the last two minutes, capitalizing on some poor rebounding and free-throw shooting from UNC. Matt Jones for Duke slashed to the bucket and laid one in to tie the game with less than 30 seconds to play, then Marcus Paige missed a jumper that would’ve won it for the Tar Heels.
In the last minute of overtime, Duke led 90-89 and had the ball. Tyus Jones missed a runner, but Duke got the offensive rebound, which forced UNC to foul. On the other end, Tokoto had a chance to tie it with a jumper, but came up short.
The Heels had one last chance, down by two with 3.5 seconds left, their Nate Britt shooting a second free throw. Britt missed it, on purpose, in the perfect spot, which gave Paige a chance to come up with the rebound. He couldn’t quite corral it, though, and Duke, incredibly, pulled this one out. They would go on to beat my Zags in the Elite 8 on their way to the national title.
26. July 19, 2015: Mets 3, Cardinals 1. Busch Stadium, St. Louis, MO. *Not included in Ticketless*
Get-in Price: Maybe $20.
I grew up in the suburbs, but when I moved back to St. Louis after my hockey broadcasting internship, I had an apartment in the city, 10 minutes from the ballpark. Whenever the Cardinals went to extra innings at Busch, I paid extra attention. I promised myself that if they got into a ridiculously long game, I would speed there and get in, somehow. The stadium would be mostly empty by the 16th or 17th inning, and I’d have an improved chance to catch a foul ball.
On this day, my roommate had attended the game but left after nine innings. When he got home, I grabbed his ticket stub. The game kept going, and I left my apartment with two outs in the bottom of the 17th. The third-base entrance and the adjacent exit-only door I spin-moved twice were locked and vacant. The gates at the home-plate entrance, though, were wide open. A few ushers and security guards were still around, and I heard, “Can I help you?” as I walked past them with my head down. I didn’t look back.
By the time I got in, the Mets scored had two runs in the top of the 18th. I saw the Cardinals retire the side, then go 1-2-3 in the bottom. No foul balls came even close to me. BOXSCORE.
27. September 13, 2015: Rams 34, Seahawks 31 (OT). Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, MO.
Get-in Price: Connor and I probably could have gotten tickets for about $30 apiece.
The Rams continually teased us. At the beginning of every season, we thought, “Hey, they finished last year well … they have all the pieces … maybe this is the year they’re gonna make the playoffs!” And every year, they would sputter to another 7-9 season. It was no different in their last year in St. Louis.
They fell behind defending NFC champion Seattle on a Tyler Lockett punt return TD, but Nick Foles led the Rams to a 17-13 lead late in the 3rd quarter. Tavon Austin took a punt to the house to make it 24-13, but Seattle fought back to tie it at 24 with a field goal with 4:46 left. On the next play from scrimmage, Cary Williams stripped Foles of the ball, recovered the fumble, and took it in.
This was … devastating. We had seen the same damn script play out so many damn times. But they marched down the field and Foles hit Lance Kendricks for a 37-yard touchdown to force overtime. Seattle was kicking off to start OT, and their head coach, Pete Carroll, called for a surprise onside kick. The Rams recovered.
Broadcasters love to say, “It would have been brilliant if it had worked,” and then criticize the decisions because it didn’t. That’s bad logic. Every decision entails a calculation of the odds, and you can either make a statistically optimal decision or not. If you have 18 in a hand of blackjack and you hit, that’s a bad decision, regardless of the 3 you draw on the next card.
Decisions should be evaluated on process, not outcome.
Greg Zuerlein made a 37-yard field goal, and the Rams forced Seattle into a 4th-and-2 situation at the Rams’ 41-yard line. A stop would win the game. Seattle handed it to Marshawn Lynch, the Rams’ defensive line burst through, and Aaron Donald brought Lynch down for the win.
Considering that it was the first game of the season and we still had high hopes — as pathetic as this sounds — that tackle is probably the highlight of the 11 years of Rams football between 2005 and 2015.
All that time, I secretly loved that they were bad. If the team had stayed in St. Louis and eventually reached the playoffs, all those years of futility would have made the Dome so much louder.
28. December 15, 2015: Rams 31, Buccaneers 23. Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, MO. *Not included in the narrative of Ticketless*
Get-in Price: No joke, we might’ve been able to get tickets for $5 apiece.
The Rams were 5-8 heading into this, their final home game of the season. Connor and I attended the Blues-Predators game (with tickets) that same Thursday night. Knowing there was a good chance it would be the last-ever Rams game in St. Louis, we drove to the Dome after the hockey game to catch the fourth quarter.
As we jogged toward the stadium, we asked fans walking the other way if we could have their ticket stubs. Eventually, we got two. We didn’t need them. We walked into the stadium’s veranda, and the turnstiles had been dragged to the side. The few security guards and ushers who were in the area seemed singularly focused on making sure no one left the building with beer still in their cups (which would be a liability for the team).
We put our heads down and walked in. A guard probably saw us and didn’t care. We met up with our family in a half-empty Section 406, where we’d spent so many Sunday afternoons.
I remember being angry at the people who just stood up and left as the clock wound down. This was potentially the Rams’ last game in St. Louis! On that night, the game was not the main event; the atmosphere was. The looks on people’s faces. The anger and the passion in their voices. There should have been more.
A solid number of fans did stay after the final whistle and made their way down to the lower level, near the NFL Network’s postgame set. The heroes of the Rams’ glory days, Marshall Faulk and Kurt Warner, were part of the crew, and it felt like we fans were begging them to do something, anything, in their power to help us. “Keep the Rams! Keep the Rams!” was the chant.
We briefly drowned out the TV crew when the chant became, “Kroenke sucks! Kroenke sucks!” — which remains a St. Louis staple, especially when the Blues host the Kroenke-owned Colorado Avalanche.
I wrote in my journal, “Connor and I took one last look around, just in case it was the last time. I wasn’t ‘sad,’ just stunned momentarily. I guess that would be the best way to describe it. So many Sundays spent there, lots of great family moments, lots of laughs … just not very good football. And that’s ok. I just wanted to hear the Dome at full capacity one time. But the best things never happen … or they tease you for a long fucking time until they do.”
29. October 22, 2016: Cubs 5, Dodgers 0. Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL.
Get-in Price: Eric sat in the bleachers for Game 2 of this series and paid $330. For the Pennant clincher, I would be surprised if anyone could have paid less than $700 on the secondary market.
Clayton Kershaw, a surefire future hall-of-famer was on the bump with the Dodgers facing elimination. The Cubs jumped all over him in the bottom of the first. Dexter Fowler doubled. Kris Bryant singled to drive him in. The Dodgers’ Andrew Toles dropped a fly ball in left field, and the Cubs added a sac-fly for a 2-0 lead after one. They added three more runs against Kershaw, and Kyle Hendricks was dynamite in 7 and 1/3 innings for the Cubs.
The ushers at Wrigley are notoriously strict, so I knew to avoid them. I asked some guys in the last row of the upper deck (who were standing anyway) if I could squeeze in with them. They said no, so I stayed on the move for the rest of the game, watching from a few different obstructed-view standing room areas until the ninth inning, when the ushers gave up. I found a nice spot in an upper-level walkway behind home plate.
The roar after each Cubs run shook Wrigley Field. The ovation for Hendricks, as he walked off the mound, was even louder. When the Cubs turned the double play — Russell to Baez to Rizzo — that won their first Pennant in 71 years, I was watching the crowd. That moment was beautiful, but fleeting. Maybe it was beautiful because it was fleeting.
30. December 7, 2018. Leganés 1, Getafe 1. Estadio Municipal de Butarque, Madrid, Spain.
Get-in Price: That’s all I wanted to know, but I never found out for sure. I had looked many times at ticket prices for other Leganés home games, and never seen one for less than $70. Because this was a rivalry game on a holiday weekend, I doubt I could’ve gotten in for less than about $100.
Leganés and Getafe are neighboring suburbs to the south of Madrid, so naturally, their La Liga teams have a spirited rivalry. I had never been to either suburb, so on the day of the game, I took a train to Getafe and explored, then took a train to Leganés. I knew the stadium was small and that the game was probably sold out, but I figured I’d ask at the box office if they had any tickets left, and how much they’d cost.
I got to the stadium about five hours before the game and followed the sign for “Taquilla.” I walked and walked, wondering if I was still going the right way. When I had arrived at the other side of the building, finally, another “Taquilla” sign pointed me to a door. I opened it.
Immediately, I knew something was off. There were no more “Taquilla” signs, nor a window where I might ask about tickets. I walked in and saw three staircases, which, it appeared, led to the seats. I went up and saw the pitch. I was the only one around. I was confused; typically, stadium security in Europe is ridiculously tight.
Then my mind began to race. I checked my phone; a solid 79% battery. Did I have my headphones? I felt my jacket pocket. They were there. I had a bag of almonds in my back pocket. I had a book in my drawstring bag.
Well, shit. As long as I’m already here …
I found a bathroom, went in a stall, and locked it. Four frigidly cold hours later, when I heard the beeps of tickets being scanned, I walked out.
31. May 7, 2019. Federer def. Gasquet, 6–2, 6–3. Manolo Santana Court, Madrid, Spain.
(Originally published HERE.)
When I snuck into the 2011 Wimbledon Final, I had no idea what I was doing. When I talked my way into seeing Rafael Nadal play at the previous year’s Madrid Open, I was flying on a wing and a prayer.
But as I approached Roger Federer’s match against Richard Gasquet at the 2019 Madrid Open, I had a gameplan. It failed. Badly.
Security at tennis matches poses an even bigger challenge for gatecrashers than MLB, NHL, college basketball, and even NFL games for one simple reason. When I snuck into the Super Bowl (as I detail in my book, Ticketless), I could move around the stadium anytime I was at risk, from standing-room only to empty seat to concourse and back. At tennis matches, though, spectators can’t move around during play. You’re not even supposed go to the bathroom until a changeover. Tennis etiquette turns me into a lame, sitting duck for security.
Therefore, the ushers who control access to seating sessions have to be on their games — and usually are. At most American sporting events, ushers and security guards are retirees, just there to collect a paycheck and see the game. But the tennis-etiquette police are no joke. The ushers in Madrid were young, fit, and alert. They guarded their gates like their lives depended on it, and scanned every single ticket going in and coming out. Except one.
I arrived at the Caja Magica to see Roger Federer play, but tickets were sold out. It was his first appearance here since 2016 (I’d lived there for the previous two years), and who knew how much longer he’d be in top form?
I knew from the previous year that a “day session” ticket (for about 50 euros) would get me a view of the main court. From there, I’d have a chance.
My plan was to do what I’d done at the NCAA Basketball Tournament years ago: See the day session, hide out in the stadium until fans entered for the night session, and blend in with the crowd. Before I even got to the front of the box office line, a man with an extra ticket asked me if I needed one.
“Sí, señor,” I said. “How much do you want for it?”
“Todo tuyo,” he said. “Yours for free.”
But after David Ferrer closed out Roberto Bautista Agut in three sets, it became clear that my plan was a bust. The ushers and security guards were combing through the seats, making sure that every last fan exited the main stadium. I wandered around, looking dazed and confused for as long as possible, but I met the same fate as the rest: the wrong of a heavy, metal, dead-bolted door.
Tennis facilities aren’t like typical sporting venues. You need a ticket to enter the complex, but then there are separate stadiums within the complex. Luckily, security made no effort to kick day-session ticket holders out of the complex, so I was free to take a lap around the main court, prodding for holes.
My first lap turned up empty. Every gate was occupied by an usher doggedly scanning tickets. I thought about jumping on a railing, pulling myself up to a ledge, and entering through an exit-only door on the stadium’s upper deck, but I was in broad daylight — and the police officers who also were making laps around the stadium did not look friendly.
The spin-move has been a close companion throughout my gatecrashing career. As I detail in the book, it doesn’t even entail a spin (I just liked the term). Its beauty is in its simplicity: Because there’s rarely a layer of security behind the ticket takers, I can pretend to fumble in my pockets for a ticket, get through the turnstile, and then … run. I did it at three World Series games in 2011, at the “Game of the Century” in college football, and more than 20 other events, including The Masters — bobbing and weaving through the crowded concourse and putting a mass of humanity between me and security.
But if you can’t even stand up during a tennis match, no way in hell could I run.
After another lap, my hopes were dwindling. I had some cash in my pocket, but I saw no ticket scalpers. Stubhub had removed the listing for the night session. The previous year, for the last two games of a Nadal match, I had begged six ushers to let me into a half-empty stadium and finally convinced one. But I remembered the image I had seen that morning on the tournament’s ticket page: Not a single green dot to indicate an available ticket. Just grayed-out seats.
And then, it happened. I turned a corner and saw an usher standing a couple of feet in front of his door. He was animatedly pointing in the other direction, describing to a group of four women where they should go.
I pounced.
My stride quickened, and so did my heartbeat. I drew close — 20 feet away. Ten. Five. The usher still hadn’t turned around. Would the women rat me out? There was no time to worry.
I slide-stepped through the door behind him. I couldn’t walk too quickly, in case an usher inside the stadium became suspicious. But I had to get the hell away.
I saw the brown clay of the court, put my head down, and kept walking until I was on the other side of the stadium. I turned around. No one had followed me.
Luckily, a few seats in the corner of the stadium remained empty throughout the match.
As I watched it, I kept seeing in my mind the word Andre Agassi used, in his autobiography, “Open,” when describing Federer’s movements: gazelle-like. When Federer wound up for that one-handed backhand, it seemed like the laws of physics left no possible outcome other than for the ball to end up in the sixth row. But every time, like a machine, it left the racket hard, low, and right where he wanted it.
At long last, I saw the greatest tennis player of all time. Even better, I did it for free.
32. August 19, 2019. Cardinals 3, Brewers 0. Busch Stadium, St. Louis, MO.
It’s all here:
