OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Played in a one-star USATT tournament in Vernon Hills, IL on Saturday. As many of you know, I have been struggling a bit to get "over the hump" over the last year and a half, and saw my rating drop from 1951 to the current point of 1788. I've played around with my equipment a bit, and just changed from using Tibhar Grass D Tec S with 1.2 mm sponge back to my favorite Dragon Talon OX. I also changed to a slightly slower blade, and a slower but more spinny forehand. Saturday, the switch back to the pips with no sponge was validated, and some of the changes I was hoping to put into action finally came through in a big way.

In my first event, U-2000, I easily beat the two players below me. Against the top seed in my group, around 1990, I played a very good match but lost a close one. Losing the first game 16-14 was a bit of a heartbreaker. But I bounced back and won game two. Games three and four were close, but I narrowly lost them. The good news was, I felt like I was playing well and had chances at upsets later in the day.

In the Open, I got a great draw, and was in the 6th group out of 6. In my first match against a young kid rated 1958, who beat me soundly a month ago when I had the pips with sponge, I played really well and won 3-1. The games I won, I really crushed him, 6, 6 and 4! Everything was working well, and I was moving well to attack his serves with my forehand, stepping around many times to hit winners. Against the top seed in my group, rated 2004, it was a dogfight. I lost the first game 15-13 after being up 9-3, so I felt like I gave one away and would basically need to win four games. I won the second, then he killed me in the third, 11-4. In the fourth I decided to go back to fast pips serves to him, which really threw off his tempo, and I tightened up my blocking game and forced more errors, winning easily 11-3! In the fifth it was back and forth the whole way. I caught some breaks, he missed two of his serves and I won 11-8! I easily dispatched the fourth seed in my group, and won my group, advancing to the Open quarterfinals with two big upsets! Against a player rated 1999, I started off well, winning the first game. He won a tight second, then my game fell apart a bit and I played my two worst games of the day, losing 3-1.

I wasn't done with the upsets yet. Against the top seed in my U-2200 group, I played a guy rated 2068. In the first two games he had a lot of trouble with my pips, and I was able to stay with him on the forehand, and I got up 2-0. In the third he made some adjustments and beat me pretty easily, but then I adjusted to the things he was doing in the fourth, and I won the fourth game 11-3! I lost to the second seed (rated 1983), who also beat the top seed, and I easily beat the fourth seed (rated 1715) to finish off the day strong.

With 3 big upsets and my "worst" loss being against a player rated 1983, it was one of the best days I've ever had at a tournament. What I've been working on is not swinging harder than 90%, often dialing back how hard I swing at a ball by even more than that. Combine that with a slower blade, slower forehand rubber (but with a ton of spin) and a slower long pips setup, and my consistency level was better than perhaps it's ever been. I really feel like switching from a faster setup to a slower setup (still not "slow", but not as offensive as before) has really worked well for me. Having attempted to tame a fast setup, it's really forced me to improve my form, and now that I have a more controllable setup, it's really paying dividends. Also, just focusing on putting the ball back on the table, time after time, has really helped. I'm not trying to overpower opponents anymore, and the increase in consistency made a huge difference.

It's been a long road, but I think I've finally found a game I can confidently move forward with and continue to develop. It sure would be nice if I would get readjusted over 2000, but I'm not sure that I'll get that big of a jump. Guess I'll just have to wait and see. Not to mention, the timing is perfect, with our Wisconsin state closed tournament coming up this Saturday, it gives me momentum and confidence for the Open Doubles (where I'm playing with the top ranked player in the state) and Open Singles. I was going to also play U-1850 at the end of the day, but my knee has been bothering me lately and I don't feel like I will be able to make it through three events again so soon. Anyway, I'm very excited, it was a really special, satisfying day for me.

_________________
"The greatest teacher, failure is"
USATT Rating: 1725
Blade: Stiga Cybershape Carbon
FH Rubber: Butterfly Tenergy 19 2.1
BH Rubber: Dr Neubauer ABS3 1.5

Sounds like a major breakthrough dwruck!

Still playing with the 999 turbo?

_________________
OOAK Table Tennis Shop | Re-Impact Blades | Butterfly Table Tennis bats
Setup1: Re-Impact Smart, Viper OX, Victas VS 401 Setup2: Re-Impact Barath, Dtecs OX, TSP Triple Spin Chop 1.0mm Setup3: Re-Impact Dark Knight, Hellfire OX, 999 Turbo
Recent Articles: Butterfly Tenergy Alternatives | Tenergy Rubbers Compared | Re-Impact User Guide

Congrats Doug! Persistence pays!

_________________
I'm always in the dark, but the Dark sheds lights upon everything!! Beauty is only pimple deep! Beauty is in the eye of the pipholder!
S/U 1: Blade: Bty Gergely . FH Black Andro Rasant 2.1 . BH Red Tibhar Grass Dtecs
S/U 2: Blade: Bty Gergely . FH Black Hexer+ 2.1 . BH Red GD Talon
S/U 3: Blade: Bty Gergely . No rubbers...thinking of adding Red Dtecs and Black Rasant
Aussie Table Tennis Shop / Aussie Table Tennis Facebook Page / Equipment Review Index / Read my Reb Report Blog: click here.

Yup, still using the 999 Turbo. I really like it. It really fits the type of game that I'm trying to play now, where I use more controlled shots, focusing more on placement and changing up spin, rather than pure speed and power. I'm still finding that the slower the loop, the more spin is on it. When I would step around and loop into their backhand, people had a lot of trouble blocking them, especially if I put a little side spin on it. When looping cross court to the forehand, if I mixed pure top with heavy side, I could usually force an error when the opportunity was there. Realizing that I'm not focusing less on power and more on spin and placement, I'm increasing the consistency of successful shots, and winning more points as a result. And I feel like I still have a long way to go to improve, I can still get a lot more consistent with my strokes. The nice thing is, the 999 Turbo also blocks well because it's soft. It's also really helped my ability to return short serves to my forehand, it's easier to keep balls on the table and I can get a good amount of spin on short pushes. I'm really glad you gave such a great review of the rubber, because it convinced me to try it and it seems to be working!

_________________
"The greatest teacher, failure is"
USATT Rating: 1725
Blade: Stiga Cybershape Carbon
FH Rubber: Butterfly Tenergy 19 2.1
BH Rubber: Dr Neubauer ABS3 1.5

Well done man, that was a good read. been meaning to try 999 turbo on fh for a couple of years but also got an eye on the new extra stiff xiom tensor. Both probably better than tg3 which im using now.

_________________
Donic defplay senso
Haifu whale soft (grips-euro)
Nittaku pimplemini 1.0mm

Out friggin' standing dude! Take that hair with you! Pour that salt over your defeated opponents!

_________________
Goof-off chopping bat
Gambler All Rosewood
Aurus Soft / Gambler GXL .6 sponge

Status - Out of Business Janitor/Babysitter

LOL thanks guys! After so many mediocre (or worse) performances, it was a real thrill. Now, what comes next is continuing to improve, build off those results, and do it more consistently. This weekend will be a tough one, I'm playing in our state closed tournament where a lot of guys know my game, so I have a lot of trouble with them. Even if I take a little step back, as long as I keep executing my game plan and trying to get better with it, that's what really matters. The results from this past tournament give me the confidence that, when playing my best, I am at a level that is higher than I've been at, and just knowing that means a lot.

_________________
"The greatest teacher, failure is"
USATT Rating: 1725
Blade: Stiga Cybershape Carbon
FH Rubber: Butterfly Tenergy 19 2.1
BH Rubber: Dr Neubauer ABS3 1.5

Congrats

I know you commented on the equipment that helped you. I would also encourage you to think what strategy helped you and how the match-ups benefited you, so you can continue to make those jumps!

The strategy that helped me the most was to concentrate on getting every ball on the table, on really focusing on reading spin on serves, and never swinging harder than 90% of full effort, often less. The first and third items go closely hand-in-hand. I finally got it in my head that I'm never going to be the type of player that overpowers anybody. So I slowed my equipment a bit and am focusing more on spin manipulation, both on the forehand and backhand. Focusing on placement, consistency, and changing up the spin. I found that just by slowing down and focusing on consistency, I hit a higher percentage and was able to win more of the longer rallies that you get into with 2000 level players. Focusing extra hard on serve motions and the spin coming at me, I made less errors, and was able to be more aggressive. The guys I lost to, they were able to adjust to my more controlled strokes and read the spin better as the match went on, and they overpowered me at the end. I need to deal with those situations better, need to recognize when to take more chances and swing harder, and need to learn to defend better against them. I'm all about building up my consistency now, and keeping the pressure on my opponents through consistency, placement and changing up spin.

_________________
"The greatest teacher, failure is"
USATT Rating: 1725
Blade: Stiga Cybershape Carbon
FH Rubber: Butterfly Tenergy 19 2.1
BH Rubber: Dr Neubauer ABS3 1.5

Well, I'm pleasantly surprised this morning. The ratings from Saturday's tournament are already updated! And, I got readjusted, and went all the way up to 1990, from 1778. That's my second-biggest single tournament gain ever, only the second time I've gained more then 200 rating points from a single tournament. I'm really excited about it, hope that I can hold onto the points, and look forward to attempting to breaking the 2000 level!

_________________
"The greatest teacher, failure is"
USATT Rating: 1725
Blade: Stiga Cybershape Carbon
FH Rubber: Butterfly Tenergy 19 2.1
BH Rubber: Dr Neubauer ABS3 1.5

Nice! Its a tough 10 points to get but you can do it. keeping the ball on the table with good placement and consistency can get you a lot further than 2000:) I am envious of the amount of tournaments and playing time you get. Maybe I'll be able to sneak away to the butterfly teams this year if you end up going.

_________________
-Teddy

I do admit, I am lucky with how much I get to play. I'm lucky to have a wife who is so understanding and allows me to go to so many. Tomorrow I've got another! After tomorrow, my next tournament is the teams in Rockford on Memorial Day weekend. It's a great tournament!

_________________
"The greatest teacher, failure is"
USATT Rating: 1725
Blade: Stiga Cybershape Carbon
FH Rubber: Butterfly Tenergy 19 2.1
BH Rubber: Dr Neubauer ABS3 1.5

Hey Doug, congrats on your tournament breakthrough. I am very happy for you on this and it also puts my tight loss against you in practice a couple of weeks ago a little bit into perspective.
I hope to make it up to Milwaukee sometime soon to get a rematch.

Cheers,
Matt

_________________
Equipment:
OSP Ultimate, FH: Dr. Neubauer Dominance Spin Hard 2.1, BH: Dr. Neubauer Troublemaker 0.5
YouTube channel: "AntiRules"

That would be fun, we had a very good match. It was so close!

At the state tournament today, I held my position in singles. In doubles, despite being the #2 seeds, my partner and I lost in the quarterfinals. We just never seemed to gel as a team.

In singles, I had a couple of tough matchups in my round robin but breezed through, losing only one game out of 3 matches. Won my first open playoff match, then lost in the quarterfinals to the fourth seed.

So, I held my own and feel like I proved that I could repeat a good performance where I had rating points on the line against solid, lower rated competition.

_________________
"The greatest teacher, failure is"
USATT Rating: 1725
Blade: Stiga Cybershape Carbon
FH Rubber: Butterfly Tenergy 19 2.1
BH Rubber: Dr Neubauer ABS3 1.5