FLORIDA TABLE TENNIS LEGEND CONTINUES!

FLORIDA TABLE TENNIS LEGEND CONTINUES AT AGE 78

INVERNESS -- 

An Inverness man is still crushing it when it comes to table tennis.

John Shultz is pushing 80 years old, and it's hard to keep up with all his championship titles and records. He has been crushing the competition for decades.

"I do a lot of spinning of the ball," he said. "That's a big part of it."

Shultz has been playing table tennis for 63 years. He first picked up a paddle in junior high school. Now he is a seasoned 78-year-old and he's like a machine.

"I really enjoy it," he said.

Shultz is a bit of a legend, as he has medaled in the Florida Senior Games 23 times in a row. That's a record. He won the singles gold medal 12 times in a row. That's another record. He has also taken home medals and trophies at the nationals and World Senior Games.

Shultz puts in some practice whenever he can at his home in Inverness. He is full of energy and still competing. He says all the glory and all the hardware doesn't mean that much, because he just loves the game.

"I'm not into the medals and trophies," he said. "I'm into the playing and the memories of playing."

Shultz will be playing in the 80s age group soon and he plans to dominate and make it to the world championships.

Two Major Table Tennis Tournaments Coming Up!

TWO MAJOR TABLE TENNIS TOURNAMENTS FOR FLORIDA-REGISTER NOW!

The central Florida area has two great USATT sanctioned tournaments scheduled for the May and June of 2015. These two tournaments should draw players of all skill levels to Lakeland, Florida. Available for the tournament will be 24 high quality Butterfly Tables and the new 3-Star Premium Nexy 40+ Poly Balls will be used. The Florida Sports Foundation and Lakeland Table Tennis Association are sponsors of the events. 

Registration is now open for both of the tournaments. Please see the information below on all the details and how to register on-line or by mail for both great events.

FLORIDA SUNSHINE GAMES TABLE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP 2015

SSG Table Tennis Championships

The 2015 Sunshine State Games Table Tennis Championships will be played Saturday, June 20 and Sunday, June 21 at the Simpson Park Recreation Center in Lakeland.

Dates: Saturday, June 20 - Sunday, June 21, 2015
Location: Simpson Park Recreation Center, 1725 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, Lakeland, Florida 33805
Entry Fee and Registration Deadlines:  Entry fee is $13 for the 1st event and $8 for each additional event. All entries must be received by June 5, 2015 or register online by June 7, 2015. No late entries accepted.
Eligibility Requirements: Events will be rated with results sent to USATT. A $7 USATT rating fee is due on-site, payable to LTTA. USATT membership is required except for Sandpaper Singles and Super Big Ball events. USATT annual membership is $49 Adult, $25 Youth. If you have never been a member of USATT, a ONE TIME tournament pass is available for $10. USATT membership is available on-site. Do not send with registration. Memberships fees should be made payable to LTTA.
Competition Format: For all events round robin format will be utilized. For divisions with 6 or less players, each player will play each other and winners will be determined by their playing record. For divisions with 7 or more players, the division will be broken into pools, playing a preliminary round robin within the pool. ONE or TWO winners from each pool will advance to a single elimination tournament. All divisions will be best of five – 11 point games. Except Sandpaper, best 2 of 3 to 21 points and Super Big Ball 2 of 3 to 11.
Sport Rules: This tournament will be conducted in accordance to USA Table Tennis rules for competition. The Sandpaper event will be conducted in accordance with the USSTTA rules. Super Big Ball event will be conducted in accordance with the SBBTTA rules.
Other: The links below provide complete information in pdf document format.  Please read the information below prior to your competition as it is important information.

General Festival Information	Competition Information
Registration Forms / Waiver	Register Online Now
Hotels	Entry Confirmation
Results	Important Updates / Schedules

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LAKELAND TABLE TENNIS NEWS

  LAKELAND TABLE TENNIS NEWS 

NOW REGISTERING!!!

FLORIDA ORANGE BLOSSOM SPRING CLASSIC 2015 USATT TOURNAMENT

MAY 1-2, 2015 in Lakeland, Florida

SECOND TOURNAMENT IN LAKELAND FOR 2015!!!!!!

 $2000.00 in Cash Awards available!!!

Trophies for top 4 players in each Colossal Round Robin Class

Note: We will be using White Nexy 3 Star Premium Poly Balls for the Colossal RR.

Big Ball Singles, Doubles and Sandpaper Events on Friday night, May 1, 2015

121 Maximum number of players allowed to enter Colossal RR

Pizza, soft drinks and bottled water-Complimentary to all players on Saturday.

Be sure to enter as soon as possible!!!

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ON-LINE

BIG BALL (44MM) SINGLES ADDED ON FRIDAY NIGHT!!!--$50 Cash Prize!!!

VISIT OUR NEW BIG BALL WEBSITE TO FIND OUT ABOUT THIS NEW EVENT!!!

http://superbigballtt.zohosites.com/

 NEWGY ROBO-PONG 2050

GRAND PRIZE ($899.00 VALUE)

TO BE AWARDED TO THE WINNER OF THE ORANGE BLOSSOM SERIES!!!

ENTER ALL 4 ORANGE BLOSSOM TOURNAMENTS FOR THE BEST CHANCE OF WINNING!!!

ALL SKILL LEVELS AND CLASSES HAVE A CHANCE TO WIN THIS GREAT NEWGY ROBOT!

SERIES POINTS ACCUMULATE FROM EACH TOURNAMENT YOU ENTER!

AN ADDITIONAL $400.00 IN CASH AWARDED TO THE TOP POINTS EARNERS!!!

DON'T MISS THIS GREAT TOURNAMENT IN LAKELAND!

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE FOR ALL EVENTS!!!

PENSACOLA TABLE TENNIS HIGHLIGHT---TT TIP OF THE WEEK

PENSACOLA TABLE TENNIS--PANHANDLE EXCELLENCE!

The Panhandle area of Florida has several exciting venues for some great Table Tennis. One of the best is the fabulous Pensacola Table Tennis Club. The club is located in beautiful Pensacola, Florida at the Fricker Community Center. It is a registered USATT affiliated club and features playing skills among the players from beginners to advanced. The non-profit club is open two nights each week with a family night on Monday from 6:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. and also on Thursday nights for more advanced play from 6:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m.

The Pensacola Table Tennis Club also has excellent tournaments scheduled throughout the year, both sanctioned and unsanctioned. The next unsanctioned tournament is scheduled for April 18, 2015. If you are interested in registering for this great tournament, CLICK HERE for more information. 

Congratulations go out to L.A. Johnston and the fine group of Table Tennis players and supporters for providing an excellent atmosphere and facility for Table Tennis activities in the great northern panhandle region of the Sunshine State.

Pensacola Table Tennis Club
901 N. "E" Street
Pensacola, FL 32501
Phone: (850)-791-3979
Email: LA@labuildsit.com
CLICK HERE FOR WEBSITE

L.A. JOHNSTON AWARDS TROPHY

TABLE TENNIS TIP OF THE WEEK

MIX UP YOUR SERVES
Mix up serves of different length and spin. Some examples of advanced serves include medium-long, deep, short, down-the-line, pure spin, pure speed, etc. Serves to the elbow tend to be very effective, since the receiver must quickly decide (and often does not in time) to use a forehand or backhand.

TABLE TENNIS IS GROWING IN FLORIDA--VERO BEACH TT HIGHLIGHT

TABLE TENNIS GROWING IN FLORIDA

According to the USATT, Florida currently has 49 official locations throughout the state where Table Tennis is available. Of course, there are thousands of other places where the sport is played, such as homes, churches, schools and various recreation centers. Many of the 49 official locations are affiliated with the USATT, which provides numerous benefits to the local clubs, including a very important liability insurance coverage. 

In 2014, there were 23 sanctioned USATT tournaments held in Florida. The locations were spread all over the state from the great tournaments in the Panhandle area of the state, through the middle of the state and down to the southern area of Florida. This provides a great opportunity for players to participate in a wide variety of tournament experiences and also to travel to see the beautiful state of Florida.

VERO BEACH TABLE TENNIS CLUB

One of the great Table Tennis clubs in Florida is located in Vero Beach, Florida. They have a new location and are a very active club. Open play is available each Monday and Thursday nights from 7:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m. and the cost is only $5.00. The club has 5 high quality USATT approved tables and three star balls are provided by the club for play. The Vero Beach Table Tennis Club has scheduled championship tournaments during the year for their members. There is a fun and friendly environment for casual play and also for strong competition with several highly rated players. 

Congratulations go out to Karl Freitag and all the others in the Vero Beach area for providing such a great environment for Table Tennis activities in Florida.

You can find out more information about the Vero Beach Table Tennis Club at:

VERO BEACH TABLE TENNIS WEBSITE

LOCATION:
3007 Aviation Blvd.
Vero Beach, FL 32960

EMAIL:
verobeachtabletennis@gmail.com

PHONE:
(772) 978-7103

KARL FREITAG