Table Tennis Tournament Time!

CENTERVILLE, Ohio - A spate of upcoming table tennis tournaments can be found on the calendar during the months of October and November. For hard-core table tennis players, this can be a mixed blessing - which to go to?

Says Iwa Gzabor, ''I set aside a certain amount of forints ... I mean dollars ... per year, to play in my local tournaments. But the next few months there are many to choose from. Too many!''

It is understandable to sympathize with the confused Iwa. The next six weeks has no less than five tournaments to choose from in the mid-west alone. The weekend of October 9th and 10th has two tournaments vying for players; the "Columbus Ohio Thanksgiving Warmup Open Tournament" in Columbus, Ohio and the "19th Annual Bernard Hock Open" in New Albany, Indiana. A week later is a grand four-star tournament, the "2004 Highland Open" in Highland, Indiana. No rest for the weary, one week later still, the "2004 Millcreek Open" in Erie, Pennsylvania offers players glory in tournament play. Shockingly, there is no tournament the succeeding week, however on November 6, the dramatically named "Dayton Giant Round-Robin Open - 'The Battle for the C Notes'" tournament takes place.

For table tennis tournament players, this is the feast time contrasting to periods of famine. Says the excitable Li Man Wah, ''Lots of tournaments now, but many times there are no tournaments for months! I prefer more even approach during season!''

Tournaments are the time to test and prove your mettle against competition beyond that of your local club. Where you come up against different players and styles and one's intestinal fortitude is put to the test. Says Bill McLaughlin, ''I bring a bottle of Pepto Bismol to a tournament because all too often, my intestinal fortitude fails me. And it ain't pretty.''

The economics of tournaments put forth by a sponsoring club are to large to ignore. Clubs rely on member fees and tournament dues to pay their bills, such as rent and renovation, and equipment upgrades, in particular tables. A typical tournament can produce anywhere from $500 to $1000 dollars for the club. No small change in the world of table tennis - a sport tepidly embraced by the United States sports media machine.

That may be changing though, as both ESPN and The Tennis Channel have committed to broadcasting table tennis televised tournaments during the upcoming months. The american public can see for themselves what high caliber table tennis is all about.

Many though are still committed ''garage pong'' players. Says Chad McBpeee, ''I leave my Pinto outside and keep my ping pong table set up for some of my buddies to play on. My pappy did that with me, and I learned the game and got pretty good. But I went to a ping pong club and saw these fellers smoking the ball and holding the paddle funny and knew then and there - I ain't so good.''

For those beyond the ping pong garage players, clubs and tournaments offer a welcome release to the pressures of the world, and a chance to show off their stuff. October alone should give these players all the release they need, and then some.