Best annual spectator sport events

[desh]

To qualify, an event must refer to one sport or one organized collection of sports, with all games/matches (if more than one) taking place over one or several consecutive days.

1. NCAA postseason basketball tournament, 1st and 2nd rounds
2. Super Bowl
3. MLB Opening Day
4. The final weekend of The Masters (yes, I even like golf on TV; yes, I have a serious problem)
5. NFL Wild Card Weekend (not the next two weekends, because the home team always wins the divisional games, and 2 games isn't enough to make championship weekend interesting)
6. The championship College Football bowl game, always a couple days after New Years
7. Daytona 500

N/A: The NHL Playoffs. They would be around #2.5 for me, except that there's no particular game or weekend that necessarily qualifies in advance as being an annual must-see event. The MLB and NBA playoffs have the same problem.

What am I missing?

Comments

[outcastspice.livejournal.com]

the stanley cup final game? or final few games?

[desh]

Not if it's the final game of a 4-game sweep. That's the problem. You can never tell even a week in advance when the must-see games will be.

[outcastspice.livejournal.com]

oh... right.

[dredpiraterober.livejournal.com]

I totally agree with the round 1 & 2 of march madness. It's just amazing, with so many games, and so many chances at upsets, and people yelling and screaming and cursing! It's awesome

[fweebles.livejournal.com]

- World cup final
- Wimbledon finals

[desh]

I was going to add the Wimbledon finals, but I've never been awake early enough to see them...

And by World Cup, do you mean soccer? I'd totally agree, except that it's only once (or twice, depending on how you look at it) every four years. In the years it happens, it's near the top, I agree, but then you could say the same for women's Olympic figure skating.

[pkzimmer.livejournal.com]

My not-so-humble submissions:

1) The Stanley Cup playoffs. This counts as a month and 1/2 of unproductivity for me.
2) The World Cup. All of it, but particularly the round of 16.
3) March Madness opening weekend. After that it sucks, generally.
4) Olympic hockey tourney.
5) Any big rivalry game where I have a stake in at least one participant. Giants-Dodgers, US-Mexico (soccer), Penn-Princeton (bball), 'Niners-Cowgirls, Sharks-Stars, etc.
6) Any rivalry game where I don't have a stake in at least one participant. Duke-UNC (bball), Habs-Leafs, Brazil-Argentina, Yanks-Red Sox, etc.
7) OT of any hockey game. Anywhere. Anytime.
8) The last 10 minutes of the aforementioned hockey game.
9) The rest of the aforementioned hockey game.
10) A "derbi" game in club soccer. Sevilla-Betis, Barça-Espanyol, Chelsea-Arsenal, Roma-Lazio, etc.
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x-billion) Watching paint dry.
x-billion and 1) The NBA.

[desh]

Yeah, your definition of "event" is a bit less stringent than mine, but I agree with you almost down the line about how exciting these are. Especially about the NBA.

I feel like I've been holding my breath for the past 21 months or so, just waiting for the next overtime Stanley Cup game. I don't even care who's playing...

[pkzimmer.livejournal.com]

Well, any time when I spend more time in front of the TV than in any other activity (including sleeping, if multiple OTs are involved), I call that a continuous event. At least until I pass out from exhaustion.

[desh]

One of my best college memories is still Game 4 of Flyers vs. Pens in 2000. I was supposed to pick up Dov at the train at 10pm, which was right when the game was supposed to end. But then both were delayed until 2:30am...

I can still close my eyes and see Primeau's move.

[pkzimmer.livejournal.com]

Eli, Kate and I were on the floor of our room watching the TV propped up on Jo's drum. What I remember most about the game is how incredibly slow everyone was skating by OT #5.

I had a history final the next day, and I remember thinking, "Cool, I'm pretty set for this class, I'll study after the game for 3 or 4 hours, crash at around 2-3, then kick the tests's ass." That plan didn't work out so hot. The studying got skipped, but I still kicked the test's ass. Half the people in the room looked like they'd stayed up to watch the game.

[ulicqel.livejournal.com]

i remember that fondly as well, even though that game took for god damned ever. I had to reschedule my differential equations final becasue i got no studing done at all. fortunately, my teacher had also watched the game and understood and let me take it with the other class.