Get ready for the “battle of the paddle” with lots of back-and-whack action as Ocean Beach Woman’s Club hosts its fourth annual fundraising ping-pong tournament on Friday, Sept. 27.

The first match at 6:30 p.m. is at the OBWC clubhouse at 2160 Bacon St. All tournament proceeds support local OBWC philanthropic endeavors. The century-old club, established in 1924, is one of San Diego’s oldest civic and philanthropic groups. Its purpose is to give members a place to create social connections, help in the neighborhood, and empower each other to be change-makers and leaders.

Over the years, OBWC has been instrumental in helping to pave Ocean Beach streets, install sewers and streetlights, and acquire a community rec center and public library, while advocating and securing year-round lifeguards. The club continues its legacy through fundraising and volunteering for Ocean Beach and Point Loma.

Susan Winkie, event founder-coordinator and its MC who wears a white tuxedo for the festivities, noted the tournament is a fun, lighthearted fundraiser that also “features fierce competition” with the current champion, Kevin Hastings, coming back to defend his title.

She added: “The first annual event was held in 2019, but was canceled the next two years due to COVID. Now in its fourth year, it has grown into one of the most highly anticipated parties in Ocean Beach.”

Winkie noted the tourney is a 32-bracket competition with each player guaranteed at least two games. Pointing out player spots sell out early every year, she said, “There’s tons of food and beverages for spectators, so we invite the whole community to come and watch the action for free.”

A crowd pleaser every year is the kick-off national anthem, this year sung by 9-year-old Kiyo Cadwell.

Three players who’ve competed previously in the ping-pong tournament – two-time champ Hastings, Glenn Millar, and Mark Mendenhall – are back again this year and talking about their experience. Hopefully, the experience of the inaugural ping-pong tourney won’t be repeated: When I guy came down from Los Angeles and competed wearing a Dodgers cap.

Millar said the tournament is more about fun and less about sport. “I would say only three or four people take this seriously, and only because they didn’t drink enough beer,” he quipped while admitting, “There are some really good players in this tournament.”

Millar added the ping-pong tourney is a homegrown OB event just like the Christmas parade. “This thing has an OB stamp all over it,” he said noting, “It’s not quite beer pong, but maybe they should do that too. It’s a fun tournament, and fun to watch. People have a great time.”

Reigning ping-pong champion Hastings concurred that the annual tourney is “a blast.” Does he prepare for it? “I think it’s cheating if you prepare,” he answered joking, “It might disqualify me.”

Hastings added the tournament is family-friendly and kids enjoy watching too. He said his team name, Knick Knack Paddy Whack, is derived from a kid’s bedtime story.

This will be Mendenhall’s second year competing. Of the tournament experience he said: “It was a good four to five hours of ping-pong action culminating in a final game cheered on by a great crowd. It has spurred on a new ping-pong community in Ocean Beach, with several players training, learning new serves, and looking forward to a very competitive tourney this year. It is all for a great foundation of giving at OBWC, and I’m excited to see who grabs the title this year.”

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

6 p.m. Player sign-in and warm-ups.

6:25 p.m. National anthem by Kiya Cadwell.

6:30 p.m. First match.

Match’s refresh every 15 minutes through the semi and then the final.

PING PONG HISTORY

Table tennis, a recreational activity and an Olympic sport since Seoul in 1988 is also known as ‘ping-pong.’ The sport’s name originates from the onomatopoeic sound of the ball (‘ping’) and the sound of a bat striking a ball (‘pong’). It was in England in the late 19th century that table tennis first appeared. Taking inspiration from lawn tennis, the first players belonged to Victorian society. Then, table tennis was seen as a mere distraction for the wealthy classes.

In 1890, Englishman David Foster, attracted by its wide appeal, introduced the first game of tennis on a table. In 1897, the first national championships were organized in Hungary. Following the success of the first public tournaments at Queen’s Hall in London, it was in 1902 that the first official World Championship took place. The sport enjoyed increased growth and the British Table Tennis Federation was created.

The first European Championships were subsequently organized in 1907. Everything stepped up a gear in the 1920s. The Table Tennis Association was created in England in 1921, followed by the International Federation in 1926. In the 1950s, table tennis became integral to the countries of Asia. The Japanese excelled at the World Team Championships between 1954 and 1959. The Japanese have since provided several world champions.

In 2005, the number of players internationally was estimated to be over 260 million. The International Table Tennis Federation embraces more than 200 nations with 33 million members. Competitions, club tournaments, or championships are organized the world over.