The rules to "I Got It" are simple: Toss a red rubber ball into a box with a bottom that slants toward a grid in the center. The grid has 25 indented squares. The balls bounce around and come to rest in one of the indentations.

If you land five in a row − vertical, horizontal or diagonal − you shout, "I got it!" And just like that, you've won.

Here's some firsthand reporting for you: It feels great to win at "I Got It." On Thursday afternoon at the Erie County Fair, I threw up my arm and shouted "I got it!" as loud as I could.

Margaret, my boss, was next to me. Margaret is not a fair person. "Once per decade," she said. The noise, the heat, the crowds – it's not her scene. But "I Got It"? She could tolerate that. More than tolerate it. After a couple of games she was leaning in, ready f

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