Legends Invitational shows great table tennis talent
Chico Lawrence, who was the big favourite from the start, won the fourth instalment of the Legends Invitational Table Tennis tournament last week.
Sports Challenges in association with Play Table Tennis hosted the fourth instalment of the quarterly Legends Invitational on last week.
The tournament boasted 28 of the best amateurs in the province. It represents the cream of the crop from a pool of over 900 players.
One-time previous champion Ronald “Chico” Lawrence was again the favourite and top seed for the event, and it was not surprising then to see him make it all the way to the final without a glitch.
More surprising was his opponent in the final. Egmond van Heerden had to dig deep to topple some big names on his way there, most notably Gauteng North Table Tennis Board (GNTTB) league player Martin Beyers and Inter Venue Table Tennis League (IVL) champion Jaco Mare in the two qualifying rounds.
Van Heerden then proceeded to upset IVL runner-up Tim Faro in the quarterfinals and another GNTTB league player Alwyn Kruger in the semi-finals. This feat demanded some great determination and mental strength.
But Van Heerden met his match in the final, with Lawrence showing oodles of class to beat him three sets to love.
In the bronze medal match first-time Legends participant Alwyn Kruger (CSIR) defeated Brendon Poonsamy 2-1.
With his win Lawrence cemented his top spot on the Sports Challenges Gauteng North rolling rankings with more than 200 points over his closest rival. His career winnings is now fast approaching R3000 over the past 18 months – not bad for amateur table tennis.
The attention now shifts to the Provincial Masters Series, which takes place over eight legs on Wednesday nights, followed by a Top 8 Final on 6 February 2018. The third and fourth legs will take place on 22 and 29 November at The Collection Venue in the East of Pretoria.
The Provincial Masters is a top-tier event boasting big names such as Terrence Mathole, Lunga Vakele and Vivian Jackson from TUT, who won the GNTTB Super League this year, as well as Wenjun Huang from Admin club, who finished with a 75% win ratio in the same league.
For more information regarding the Provincial Masters series or where to join a social club, please visit www.playtabletennis.co.za or contact Chris van der Walt at chris@challengers.co.za.
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