Austin Table Tennis Club

Earlier this year table tennis in Austin, Texas took a giant leap forward. The Austin Table Tennis Club opened what we believe is the one of the finest facilities in the country, certainly the finest in the central Texas area. About two years ago John Muhich, one of our club members who is in the real estate business, came to the club with a proposal for a new place to play that would be used for table tennis only. After a lot of spirited debate, hard work, sweat, and money, that plan became a reality in February. At long last we have a place dedicated full time to table tennis, boasting close to 6000 square feet of playing area, a wood floor, room for 8 to 10 tables, and a 12-foot ceiling with recessed lighting. We also have a lounge area with tables, chairs, couch, refrigerator, TV and VCR.

Our regular club times are Tuesday and Thursday evening, and during the day on Saturday, but we have access on other days as well. A typical club night or day will see 25 to 40 people in attendance. The atmosphere is friendly and helpful, and the skill level ranges from beginner to over 2200. On Sundays we put on a friendly in-house round robin tournament, free to monthly paying members.

Our first USATT tournament in the new location was held in June. The "Austin Open 2000" got off to a rousing start with 54 entrants and the unexpected appearance of Barney J. Reed, Razvan Cretu, and Viktor Subonj, three 2500 level players! The tournament ran smoothly and their presence was an added bonus. As you might expect, they finished 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respectively in Championship singles. If the success of this event is any indication then certainly more tournaments are on the way in Austin. Since June, Viktor Subonj has been kind enough to make several trips to Austin from his home in Houston to put on coaching sessions for our members. We also have access to table tennis equipment as one of our members is a dealer for a major supplier.

Austin is a vibrant, growing city which has become a world leader in the hi-tech community in recent years. Dell Computer, IBM, Motorola, Intel, AMD, Samsung, and many others have major operations in Austin. This has certainly contributed to the international flavor of our club. We currently have close to 70 members representing more than 15 different countries. Most of our players seem to be connected in some way to the computer and software industry.

Since the club opened we have seen the addition of a large number of new players with a common request. How can we become better players and who can provide proper training and coaching? Any friendly, enthusiastic, and qualified table tennis coaches who are interested are encouraged to contact us!

No story about table tennis in Austin would be complete without mentioning Kenneth Beauchamp, who founded the original club more that 10 years ago. The club is growing and we invite any and all table tennis players passing through Austin to pay us a visit. To learn more, visit our website at www.netwark.com/attc or give us a call at 512-491-PONG. Also you can contact our club president, Rick Mueller at threestar40@mindspring.com or myself, Richard Howell, at rhowell1@austin.rr.com.