April 19, 2021
3 DAYS AGO - This week's blog will be up by 2:00 PM eastern time or I have to invade Afghanistan and battle Expand
3 DAYS AGO - This week's blog will be up by 2:00 PM eastern time or I have to invade Afghanistan and battle the Taliban with a ping-pong paddle. Meanwhile, the Tip of the Week is up, Imagine a Score or Situation. And to tide you over, here's TABLE tennis (6 sec)! But since that's pretty short, here's Zhang Jike coming out of retirement to play Hou Yingchao (10:31)! Collapse
March 29, 2021
29/03/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 2:30 PM or I have to capsize a huge shipment of ping-pong balls Expand
29/03/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 2:30 PM or I have to capsize a huge shipment of ping-pong balls in the Suez Canal. Any ship that tries to get through will smack into those ping-pong balls and sink like the Titanic hitting an iceberg. Meanwhile, the Tip of the Week is up, Power Player Control Shots. And here's the short film Pingpong Lucu (7:11) - it's in Chinese, but still interesting and funny to watch! Collapse
Best Multi-Game Tables
11/03/2021 - Best Multi-Game Tables (Reviews)We spent over 30 hours playing and testing over a dozen Expand
11/03/2021 - Best Multi-Game Tables (Reviews)We spent over 30 hours playing and testing over a dozen multi-game tables. We put each of the …
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Butterfly Amicus Robot Review
11/03/2021 - Butterfly Amicus Review & ComparisonExpert: Kevin James, Last Updated: 17/02/2020Butterfly is Expand
11/03/2021 - Butterfly Amicus Review & ComparisonExpert: Kevin James, Last Updated: 17/02/2020Butterfly is the undisputed leader in the professional table tennis robot …
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February 22, 2021
22/02/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 2PM or for the fourth time in a month I have to go out and Expand
22/02/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 2PM or for the fourth time in a month I have to go out and shovel snow. (Wait, I have to do that either way!) But to help tide you over, the Tip of the Week is up, Rote vs. Random Drills. And here's Frozen Ice Racket Challenge (6:17) from Pongfinity! Collapse
The Best Ping Pong Table For you in 2021
05/02/2021 - The Best Ping Pong Table To Buy in 2021 (And which to Avoid) Best High End Stiga Advantage Expand
05/02/2021 - The Best Ping Pong Table To Buy in 2021 (And which to Avoid) Best High End Stiga Advantage Check Price on …
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January 25, 2021
25/01/2021 - This week's blog will go up by 3PM or everyone learns the truth. I'm QAnon. Meanwhile, to Expand
25/01/2021 - This week's blog will go up by 3PM or everyone learns the truth. I'm QAnon. Meanwhile, to tide you over, here's the Tip of the Week, Finding Simple Tactics That Work. And here's Another Year of Ping Pong (10:53) with some really entertaining stuff from Adam Bobrow! Collapse
January 4, 2021
04/01/2021 - Today's blog will be up by 2:30 PM or every player I ever beat in a tournament can contact the Expand
04/01/2021 - Today's blog will be up by 2:30 PM or every player I ever beat in a tournament can contact the umpire or referee for the match and pressure them to find enough points for them to have won against me. I'm going to do the same - I've had some heart-breaking losses, but I'm going to be contacting those umpires and see if we can scrounge up enough points so I win. (I was up late watching movies again and so got another late start.) Meanwhile, the Tip of the Week is up, Play Both Weaker and Stronger Players. And to tide you over, here's a Christmas Paddle Video (53 sec) - "This truly is a special moment... boy gets the perfect gift this Christmas." A must watch. Collapse
December 14, 2020
14/12/2020 - This week's blog will be up by 2PM eastern time or I have to go to law school this afternoon, Expand
14/12/2020 - This week's blog will be up by 2PM eastern time or I have to go to law school this afternoon, get my law degree on Tuesday, get appointed to the Supreme Court on Wednesday, and on Thursday rule that yes, in fact, our next president is Grogu ("Baby Yoda"). Vote Baby Yoda!!! Meanwhile, the Tip of the Week is up, Use It or Lose It! And to help tide you over, here's World's Longest Ping Pong Shot (8:02) from Pongfinity! Collapse
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April 12, 2021
12/04/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 2:30 PM or I have to take over running the US Nationals and run Expand
12/04/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 2:30 PM or I have to take over running the US Nationals and run it all round robin. Meanwhile, the Tip of the Week is up, Learn from a Match. And to tide you over, here's Riley Dog Pong (63 sec)! Collapse
March 22, 2021
22/03/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 2PM (eastern time) or I have to wear a pink "I'm a Expand
22/03/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 2PM (eastern time) or I have to wear a pink "I'm a Unicorn" mask at my next tournament. Meanwhile, the tip of the week is up, Rally Down Faster & Quicker Players. And to help tide you over, here's Quincy The Cat Plays Ping Pong And He Can Probably Whoop Your Tail, Too (14 sec)! Collapse
Joola Inside Table Tennis Table Review
11/03/2021 - Joola Inside Table Tennis Table ReviewAlso known as: Joola Inside 15, Joola Inside 5/8'' Expand
11/03/2021 - Joola Inside Table Tennis Table ReviewAlso known as: Joola Inside 15, Joola Inside 5/8'' competition grade tableAuthor: Kevin James, Review last …
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March 8, 2021
08/03/2021 - Tip of the Week
Experiment with Serves and Receives Early.
Sports Psychology, Weekend Coaching, Expand
08/03/2021 - Tip of the Week
Experiment with Serves and Receives Early.
Sports Psychology, Weekend Coaching, and Ohio, Oh My!!!
I may have to go back to college and get another degree, this one in psychology. I’m starting to do more sports psychology sessions with our up-and-coming juniors. I wrote about this in my February 15 blog, under “Weekend Coaching.” As a match coach, I’ve been both learning and teaching sports psychology for about 40 years (including many group sessions with the sports psychologist at the US Olympic Training Center during my four years there), but now I’m doing one-on-one sessions on it. From those years of coaching and learning, I have a whole basket full of mental tricks to help players overcome almost any sports psychology problem - but rather than deal with it during a tournament, it’s best to address it and solve the problem before the tournament begins.
I’ve actually found a unique mix - the sessions are actually joint Collapse
February 15, 2021
15/02/2021 - Tip of the Week
Pushing Short: When to Learn?
=>BEGIN USATT SECTION<=
Ongoing USATT Expand
15/02/2021 - Tip of the Week
Pushing Short: When to Learn?
=>BEGIN USATT SECTION<=
Ongoing USATT Sagas
I'm resigned to the fact that I'm going to need to have a USATT segment in every blog, just to keep up with all the crazy things going on. If you have no interest in USATT matters, skip over this segment - though you might find the final item, the $200,000 arbitration case (technically, $170,000-$200,000), a doozy. (Keep in mind that when I speak of USATT, I'm speaking of their leadership as a whole. There are individuals who are trying to fix these problems.) Here's the latest - and I hope there's nothing to write about next week.
USATT-NCTTA Grievance. I blogged about this in last week's blog. Here's the National Collegiate Table Tennis Association's news item on this, The USATT Motion and Grievance. It's still mind-boggling to me that USATT has chosen to pick this fight with NCTTA, one they will almost for certain lose, leading to great animosity Collapse
Table Tennis Events 2021 - World Ranking Events Calendar
04/02/2021 - Keep up to date with all the top table tennis events. Here's a list of events in 2021 which count Expand
04/02/2021 - Keep up to date with all the top table tennis events. Here's a list of events in 2021 which count for World Ranking points. Collapse
January 18, 2021
18/01/2021 - I started late again this morning, and almost took the day off for Martin Luther King Day, even Expand
18/01/2021 - I started late again this morning, and almost took the day off for Martin Luther King Day, even wrote a note that the blog would go up tomorrow. But I changed my mind and went to work on it. It'll be up by 3:00 PM or I don't get one of Trump's pardons tomorrow and go to prison for my 45-year forehand killing spree. Meanwhile, the Tip of the Week is up, Shorten Stroke on Receive. And here's Titus Dubina (74 sec) embarking on his professional table tennis, acting, and endorsement career! Collapse
December 21, 2020
28/12/2020 - I was up late watching movies last night (Pixar's "Soul" was excellent), and so got Expand
28/12/2020 - I was up late watching movies last night (Pixar's "Soul" was excellent), and so got a very late start today. This week's blog will be up by 3 PM or 2021 will be a complete repeat of 2020, but this time the murder hornets will take center stage and we'll all have to wear professional beekeeper outfits. Meanwhile, here's the Tip of the Week, Use Quick, Deep Pushes to Set Up Your Attack. And to help tide you over, here's Funniest Moments 2020 (12:37) from Pongfinity! Collapse
How To Choose Your Table Tennis Rubber
14/12/2020 - What type of table tennis rubbers do you need? What are the differences? Let me help you choose Expand
14/12/2020 - What type of table tennis rubbers do you need? What are the differences? Let me help you choose the right ones for you. Collapse
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April 5, 2021
05/04/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 2PM eastern time or I have to give back all the colored Expand
05/04/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 2PM eastern time or I have to give back all the colored ping-pong balls I stole yesterday from the Easter Bunny. Meanwhile, the Tip of the Week is up, Reading Service Spin. And to tide you over, here's King of the Frozen Table (7 min) from Pongfinity! Collapse
March 15, 2021
15/03/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 3PM or I have to wear a pink unicorn mask with sparkles Expand
15/03/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 3PM or I have to wear a pink unicorn mask with sparkles everywhere I go for the next month. (Blame Daylight Savings Time and late night reading.) Meanwhile, here's the Tip of the Week, Do You Really Play the Middle? And to tide you over, here's the Butterfly Manyball Dance Battle (30 sec)! Collapse
Stiga Pro Carbon Review
11/03/2021 - Stiga Pro Carbon ReviewAuthor: Kevin James, Last updated: 15/02/2020Hello, fellas! Today we'll be Expand
11/03/2021 - Stiga Pro Carbon ReviewAuthor: Kevin James, Last updated: 15/02/2020Hello, fellas! Today we'll be taking a look at one of the …
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March 1, 2021
01/03/2021 - This week’s blog will be up by 3:00 PM or I have will go outside and see my shadow, and Expand
01/03/2021 - This week’s blog will be up by 3:00 PM or I have will go outside and see my shadow, and we’ll have six more years of pandemic. Meanwhile, the Tip of the Week is up, Learn Something New Each Time You Play, and to help tide you over, why not enjoy some Beetle Bailey table tennis cartoons, including the new one that came out Sunday? Collapse
February 8, 2021
08/02/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 1:30 PM Eastern Time or I have to give up the Super Bowl ring I Expand
08/02/2021 - This week's blog will be up by 1:30 PM Eastern Time or I have to give up the Super Bowl ring I won in the Puppy Bowl last night. Meanwhile, the Tip of the Week is up, Locking Up Your Opponents. And to tide you over, here's Top 10 Best Table Tennis Trick Shots 2020! Collapse
February 1, 2021
01/02/2021 - Tip of the Week
Play the Middle Against Tall Players, Wide Angles Against Short Players.
$3000 Expand
01/02/2021 - Tip of the Week
Play the Middle Against Tall Players, Wide Angles Against Short Players.
$3000 Nittaku Ohio Open
I had a great time this weekend coaching at the Ohio Open - as always, they run nice events at the Samson Dubina TTA. The tournament staff was Steve Graber Josh Graber, Sam Dubina, Mike Boyd, Blake Cottrell, and of course Samson Dubina (who also acted as referee). Here are complete results, with Gal Alguetti over Sharon Alguetti in the Open final. Here's video (21:53) of Sharon Alguetti's five-game win over Yahao Zhang in the Under 2650 final. All the expected Covid precautions were taken, with everyone's temperature taken on the way in, social distancing, and masks required except when actually at the table playing. (As a precaution, I'll get Covid testing in the next day or so.) And they had free lunch and dinner for everyone on Saturday!!!
I was there coaching Stanley Hsu (12, 2286, #1 in 12 and Under in US) and Ryan Lin (11, 2038, #2 in US in 11 Collapse
January 11, 2021
11/01/2021 - Tip of the Week
Should You Experiment If You Have a Big Lead?
Mercy Points and Comebacks
There was Expand
11/01/2021 - Tip of the Week
Should You Experiment If You Have a Big Lead?
Mercy Points and Comebacks
There was quite a lot of discussion on Facebook from my blog last week about whether to give "mercy points." So let's revisit.
The basic rule is that it's up to you if you want to give a mercy point at 10-0. Both Ma Long and Jan-Ove Waldner, generally considered the two main candidates for Greatest of All Time, have given away mercy points or played exhibition at the end of a lopsided match. Other top players are die-hard try to win every point, even at 10-0 against a beginner. Some players might be insulted if you "give" them a point, so it depends on the player and circumstances. As I said, in a non-competitive match, I prefer to put a ball up and let them "earn" the point.
It also depends on the event. A senior focused on winning Over 50 at the Nationals shouldn't take chances there, but might give a point (or go easy) at 10-0 match point in a Collapse
December 21, 2020
21/12/2020 - I'm way behind today. This week's blog will be up by 3PM or I will declare martial law (or Expand
21/12/2020 - I'm way behind today. This week's blog will be up by 3PM or I will declare martial law (or is that Pong Law?), send out the troops (marauding players with deadly ping-pong paddles), declare the recent USA Table Tennis election a let, and take over USATT by storm. Meanwhile, the Tip of the Week is up, Proper Strokes Are 1-2-3: Don't Forget the Neutral Position! And to help tide you over, here's Watchin' Sid & Nandan's Guest Appearance on Ryan's Mystery Playdate (2:52)! Collapse
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