OT biggest choke job with a title in your hands

[Guapo]

 

[the Q]

I go with 2011 Texas Rangers, solely because Nelson Cruz treated the warning track like it was made of molten lava.

But yeah, Vande velde meltdown has to be up there as well.

 

[8893]

-86 World Series, not just Buckner but a ton of choke jobs there, the Sox also had a 3-0 lead in game 7.

Game was already tied when Buckner booted that. No title in hand. That was on Stanley.

 

[Guapo]

Game was already tied when Buckner booted that. No title in hand. That was on Stanley.

They blew a 3-0 lead in Game 7 too.

 

[the Q]

They blew a 3-0 lead in Game 7 too.

Calvin Schiraldi was never the same after that.

And we know what happened to Donnie Moore.

1986 was not a good year for relievers.

 

[Goat]

Scott Hoch loses Masters after missing tiny putt. Faldo wins. Our Greg Norman unravels and loses big lead. Faldo wins.

 

[goskis2018]

2005 champions league final. Heavily favored ac Milan blew a 3-0 halftime lead.

 

[UConnNick]

Yale gives up 16 points in the final 42 seconds of THE Game at Harvard Stadium, allowing Harvard to tie it 29-29 and tie Yale for the Ivy League title at 8-0-1. That 1968 Yale team was nationally ranked at 18. Calvin Hill was a senior starting tailback for Yale. Tommy Lee Jones was a senior All-Ivy OG for Harvard.

 

[J187Money]

Scott Hoch loses Masters after missing tiny putt. Faldo wins. Our Greg Norman unravels and loses big lead. Faldo wins.

Van de velde at Carnoustie.

 

[B1GEast]

The Pats have been on the wrong side sometimes as well, the loss to the Giants in 08 was a game they had in the bag.

 

[Tenspro2002]

I go with 2011 Texas Rangers, solely because Nelson Cruz treated the warning track like it was made of molten lava.

But yeah, Vande velde meltdown has to be up there as well.

Oh man, the Nelson Cruz play.

35-year-old Lance Berkman represented the tying run, on 1st base, with 2 outs. The only way he scores on a ball in play if is the outfielder misplays it badly. Right off the bat, Cruz has to do either 1 of 2 things to prevent the tying run from scoring:
A) catch the ball
B) give up on catching it, turn around and play it off the wall for a double that would hold Berkman at 3rd

Instead, he does the one thing that would allow them to tie the game: flail helplessly at the ball and let it bounce 30 feet away. Probably the worst defensive choke in baseball history -- yes, worse than Buckner's.

 

[UConnNick]

Oh man, the Nelson Cruz play.

35-year-old Lance Berkman represented the tying run, on 1st base, with 2 outs. The only way he scores on a ball in play if is the outfielder misplays it badly. Right off the bat, Cruz has to do either 1 of 2 things to prevent the tying run from scoring:
A) catch the ball
B) give up on catching it, turn around and play it off the wall for a double that would hold Berkman at 3rd

Instead, he does the one thing that would allow them to tie the game: flail helplessly at the ball and let it bounce 30 feet away. Probably the worst defensive choke in baseball history -- yes, worse than Buckner's.

You can't be serious. Buckner let a slow rolling dribbler go right between his legs. Most Little Leaguers would have made that play.

 

[Tenspro2002]

You can't be serious. Buckner let a slow rolling dribbler go right between his legs. Most Little Leaguers would have made that play.

The game was already tied. Even if he makes the play there's a good chance the Red Sox lose.

Nelson Cruz could have kept the Rangers' lead intact with only 1 out to get to win the World Series.

 

[UConnNick]

The game was already tied. Even if he makes the play there's a good chance the Red Sox lose.

Nelson Cruz could have kept the Rangers' lead intact with only 1 out to get to win the World Series.

By that logic, you can just as easily say it was only G6. They could have won G7, but they didn't. They at least forfeited any chance to win G6 due to Buckner's blunder, and winning that game wins the WS.

 

[Chin Diesel]

I'll make this the Cliff Notes version of a story I've told before on this board.

During summer semester at college many years ago a buddy was having a party at his on campus apartment. Chin hits it off with a friendly female coed and we go out in the stairwell to get to know each other a bit better. Friends told me the next day, it was a sure thing. Right up to the point I passed out mid-sentence and fell down the stairs on to the landing with a pint of Jack in my hands.

 

[WhiteDressWes]

Game was already tied when Buckner booted that. No title in hand. That was on Stanley.

Stanley was supposed to cover first base. When he didn't, it made a routine play for Buckner very difficult.

 

[BUConn10]

Kevin Ollie.

 

[StepbackCity]

Can’t believe no one has mentioned the infamous 3-1 lead.

 

[Yardigan]

04 ALCS

 

[Chin Diesel]

Oh man, the Nelson Cruz play.

35-year-old Lance Berkman represented the tying run, on 1st base, with 2 outs. The only way he scores on a ball in play if is the outfielder misplays it badly. Right off the bat, Cruz has to do either 1 of 2 things to prevent the tying run from scoring:
A) catch the ball
B) give up on catching it, turn around and play it off the wall for a double that would hold Berkman at 3rd

Instead, he does the one thing that would allow them to tie the game: flail helplessly at the ball and let it bounce 30 feet away. Probably the worst defensive choke in baseball history -- yes, worse than Buckner's.

Barry Bond's not being able to throw out a runner from deep SS in the playoffs has to be up there too.

 

[jdb50]

Have a nice summer Coach K

 

[the Q]

Amazing defense on that reddick drive.

what a strip.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

Boston U. hockey against PC a few years ago.

They had the game in hand with minutes to play. The goalie made a routine save on a shot from center ice, it was above the frame of the net. He proceeded to bring his glove down and the puck slipped between his legs and into the net. PC snuck out of the coffin and won the game in OT.

I was wondering how many posts it would take for someone to bring this up....

But PC won the game with another 3rd period goal, didn't go to OT. It didn't directly lead to the loss from a time perspective like the Arkansas drop did, in fact BU came within a hair of tying it in the final seconds. But the play was absolutely devastating. I've never been in a building where one play changed the entire aura and feel of the place than that one. Completely and totally sucked the life out of the BU bench and every BU fan in the stands.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

This being a basketball forum I'm surprised no one has put this one up yet:

 

[Scoe]

The Pats have been on the wrong side sometimes as well, the loss to the Giants in 08 was a game they had in the bag.

I was just rewatching Super Bowl 42 the timeline on NFL network, I gotta admit it was a big fail on Jarvis Greene and Richard Seymour's part on not sacking Eli, Michael Strahan joked that he couldn't believe it because Eli falls down in practice with no one around him, on the Tyree play Harrison did have good defense on the play Tyree just made a better play.