December 9, 2024

Next Blog – January 6, 2025
I’ll be out of town the rest of the month, leaving for the US Open on Dec. 15, and then Christmas with family in Sonoma, CA (near San Francisco). So, I’ll go back to weekly blogging on Monday, Jan. 6. However, a Tip of the Week will still go up every Monday. Happy Holidays, and see you next year!

Tip of the Week
Off-Speed Blocks.

US Open, and Elite League, and Weekend Coaching
This Sunday, Dec. 15, I’m off for the US Open Dec. 16-21. I’ve been to every US Open and US Nationals starting in 1985 (plus several before that, starting with the 1976 US Open when Gerald Ford was president). So, this will be my 39th US Open in a row, to go with my 39th US Nationals in July. It would be 40 in a row for each except they canceled both in 2020 due to Covid.

Usually I mostly coach at these tournaments but this year I’m more of a player. We only have three juniors from our club going, and they may already have coaches. I’ve been training hard to get ready, though sometimes I feel like the training just gets me tired.

I’ll be competing in six events: Over 60 Men’s Singles (seeded tenth, but there’s a whole bunch of players just ahead of me in the same rating range); Over 60 Men’s Doubles with Sun Yang (we’re second seed); Hardbat Singles (which I’ve won twice before at the US Open or Nationals, but am not really competitive at that level anymore); Over 40 and Over 60 Hardbat Singles (I’ve won Over 40 eight times and Over 60 one time, and have a good chance again in both); and Hardbat Doubles with Allan Anzagira (I’ve won it 14 times – but the field is very strong this year).

Five-times US Men’s Singles Champion Dan Seemiller once told me that when you get older, you sometimes feel like you can play almost as well as you could at your prime. But other times you absolutely can’t play at all. This past Saturday was one of those times.

I played in the MDTTC Elite League on Saturday. And yes, it was a disaster. I’d had a hard training session the day before (Friday), and my muscles were still tired. Then it got worse. We had an odd number of players in our junior group sessions that day, and so for three hours straight (10:30AM-1:30 PM) I acted as a practice partner. I thought this would be good practice for the US Open. I then left for two hours for a late lunch and did some writing. I came back for the Elite League at 4PM, and felt tired, stiff, and old. I played anyway and got killed. I felt like I could barely move, and I kept missing easy shots – the muscles just wouldn’t cooperate. If I’m like that at the US Open, I’m doomed. While I’m an expert on most aspects of table tennis, this training while old (I’m 65 in February) is a new thing.

I’m going to try again in the Elite League next Saturday, the day before leaving for the Open. But I’m going to try to get a little more rest first!

During those three hours I acted as a practice partner I put the players through the usual assortment of drills, all involving strokes and footwork. One interesting drill was the down-the-line drill. I put a ball net on the table so the long handle on it gave them only about 18 inches of table to hit to, and then we hit down the line, first their forehand to my backhand, then their backhand to my forehand. (We were all righties.) When they did well, I moved the ball net closer to the sideline. It kept moving it closer and closer. One girl was able to hit 19 backhands in a row with only four inches of table!

At the end of the more advanced session we met and discussed what we had learned at the North American Teams, which had been held the previous weekend, where they played LOTS of matches. (Nearly all gained rating points, probably an average of over 100 points each.) Some of the topics they brought up:

  • Vary your serves
  • Ball placement
  • Play aggressive
  • Be aggressive with backhand, not just forehand
  • Keep your focus
  • Find opponent’s weakness and go after it. (I noted that this, combined with forcing your game on the opponent, essentially makes up all tactics.)
  • Don’t forget your shoes and racket!

Help Support the USA Collegiate TT Team at the World University Games!
Here’s the news item. Would you like to be a sponsor?

Open Letter to Petra Sörling (ITTF President) Regarding the Service Rules Issue
Here’s the video (7:01) from Monqui Pong.

Major League Table Tennis
Follow the action!

Butterfly Training Tips

New from Performance Biomechanics Academy Table Tennis.

New from PongSpace

Ping Pong Whole Body Workout
Here’s the video (12:02) from Dr. Table Tennis.

New from PingSkills

Kanak Jha and Sid Nareth Training and Talking
Here’s the video (90 sec).

Hugo Calderano vs Darko Jorgic
Here’s the video (13:58) of the 2024 City of Barcelona International Trophy, from TT11TV.

New from Steve Hopkins/Butterfly

New from ITTF

‘Ping Pong’ Serves Up High-Stakes Drama at JAFF Market
Here’s the article about this upcoming movie.

Dark Pong
Here’s the video (21 sec) as they play table tennis in the dark at the San Antonio TTC on Sunday, Dec. 15, 2-6 PM!

We Challenged 100 Kids | German Edition
Here’s the video (6:21) from Table Tennis Daily!

Why I Lose at Table Tennis
Here’s where you can buy the shirt!

Toddler Pong
Here’s the video (8 sec) of toddler playing while standing on table – and he’s pretty good!

No Mercy: Adam vs Timo
Here’s the video (9:58) from Adam Bobrow!

Extreme Mini Golf Courts
Here’s the video (9:09) from Pongfinity! Some great stuff.

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