Originally Posted by zerolife

Like the other posters have said I have never seen a TSA letting someone pass through the checkpoint without a boarding pass or boarding area pass. The whole point is for them to ensure that you are authorized to enter the secured area, and the photo ID is only used to proof that you are the person on the boarding pass. So you could pass the checkpoint without a photo ID as TSA does have alternative methods to establish your identity, but you can't without a boarding pass or boarding area pass.