Ticket scalping is supposed to be illegal in Georgia, and it's definitely contrary to Augusta National Golf Club policy.
The governor twice has vetoed bills to legalize ticket brokering, as proponents like to call reselling tickets for prices above face value. Yet only a handful of small-time scalpers -- those dense enough to sell to undercover cops -- are arrested each year during Augusta's annual Masters Tournament.
And then there's 24/7 Ticket Service, a brokering company headquartered on Peachtree Street Northeast in Atlanta, right in the governor's back yard. The company's World Wide Web site, located at www.webtickets.com, lists a telephone number with a 404 area code.
Headquartered in downtown Atlanta, 24/7 has been in business 10 years and has ``satisfied customers from across the United States and the world,'' according to the Web site. The company is a dues-paying member of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and the Atlanta Sports Council.
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24/7 Ticket Service, a brokering company headquartered in Atlanta, maintains a Web site at www.webtickets.com.
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And until The Augusta Chronicle asked, no one had ever questioned the legality of what 24/7 Ticket Service is doing -- buying and selling admission badges to the Masters Tournament and other sporting events well above face value, despite a state law that prohibits the practice. It's also illegal for brokers to advertise what they're doing.
``Please keep in mind we are a private ticket broker. Prices are set by the market and are usually well above face value,'' an online information form warns.
Even after Georgia officials were told about 24/7, no one seemed concerned.
Kristin Carvell, a spokeswoman for Gov. Zell Miller, said his vetoes of scalping bills send a strong message that ticket brokering won't be condoned in Georgia. But she said the governor's office isn't responsible for enforcing anti-scalping laws, in effect since 1966.
Daryl Robinson, deputy counsel for the Georgia attorney general's office, said it would be up to the Fulton County solicitor general to decide whether to investigate or prosecute the owners of 24/7.
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Get the low-down on scalper language by clicking on the image above to see the full-sized graphic "Ticket brokers' lingo."
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No cases in 2 years
The solicitor's office hasn't prosecuted a scalping case in at least two years and ``doesn't go out looking for them,'' said Rees Smith, deputy solicitor general. Generally, those misdemeanor cases are handled in Atlanta's Municipal Court after police make an arrest.
Atlanta police aren't equipped to do much investigating on the Internet, said Officer John Quigley. They're most likely to pursue scalpers on Atlanta's streets, he said.
``Obviously, if the event is taking place in Atlanta, we're going to try to make sure our folks are out there,'' said Officer Quigley, who is Atlanta's police spokesman.
Carl White, owner of 24/7 Ticket Service, isn't talking. Three messages from The Chronicle went unanswered last week. Employees said he was traveling out of town, including a trip to San Antonio -- site of the NCAA Final Four basketball tournament.
The Better Business Bureau in Atlanta had no information on the company.
In early March, 24/7 offered to sell badges for the Masters Tournament, quoting prices of $450 for a Par-3 Contest practice-round ticket -- sold by Augusta National for $21 -- and $1,500 for a Sunday-only tournament badge. The golf club sells admission badges for the four-day tournament to club patrons for $100.
Ticket scalping is a misdemeanor in Georgia, punishable by up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine for each offense.
While 24/7 may be a blatant example of ticket-brokering in Georgia, there's plenty of the business going on outside Atlanta Braves games and the annual Masters Tournament. Scalpers reportedly did a brisk business during the Olympic Games in Atlanta in 1996.
``They're not obvious or flagrant about it,'' said Richmond County sheriff's Chief Deputy Ronald Strength.
``They're not standing out on the street corner on Washington Road. They'll make the deal and meet later at a restaurant or hotel or bowling alley -- some other location. Only two people know about it, because only two people are there. Unless we get a lead or a tip from someone that it's going to happen at a certain time, we just don't know about it.''
Handful of arrests
Augusta police usually make only five or six arrests a year for scalping Masters badges, Chief Deputy Strength said, although signs are posted across town and newspaper classifieds are filled with potential buyers.
Chief Deputy Strength wouldn't comment on investigators' undercover efforts to arrest scalpers. Augusta National officials are similarly close-mouthed, but they reportedly scan Internet sites and advertisements.
Brokers who advertise Masters badges receive letters with ``pretty strong language'' ordering them to cease and desist, one official said.
The letters aren't very effective.
When tournament time rolls around, it's not just golf fans who flock to Augusta. Brokers set up temporary offices in local hotel rooms and dispatch street hustlers to fill ticket orders taken months in advance. Badges are delivered by courier or FedEx, usually the night before clients are scheduled to be on the Augusta National course.
This year, Alabama broker Mark ``Marvelous Marv'' Marvin flew an employee to Augusta to pick up four Masters badges from an Augusta National patron who was selling them for $3,500 each. On his Web site for Marvelous Tickets, Mr. Marvin is offering four-day badges for about $5,000 each.
``I put a guy on a plane to go get them,'' Mr. Marvin said. ``You don't want to have $20,000 in tickets flying around in the mail if you can help it. So I'll put a guy on a plane right now and he'll be there in two hours to pick them up.''
Scalpers do healthy business despite law 
