Many US players train hard all year long for that one important tournament.  Then, the defining moment arrives...  ***drum roll***
 
Nerves take over...
The pressure of the event takes precedence in their mind...
The opponent gains momentum...
And it results in another failed performance! >OUCH<
 
There are 2 general types of players - over achievers and under achievers.  Over achievers perform better than their normal level and often perform better in tournaments than they do in practice.  Under achievers perform worse than their normal level and usually play at about 40-50% of their full potential when faced with an important tournament match.
 
 
I could go on and on describing many ways to overcome obstacles, develop a think circle, release the pressure, overcome nervousness...  however, I have already talked about those in about 30 previous articles on mental strength during the last 2 years of blogging.  So, today, I just want to make 1 statement.  This is a proven fact in the table tennis world....
THE MORE TOURNAMENTS YOU PLAY, THE LESS PRESSURE YOU WILL FEEL.
This is the reason that I have designed weekly tournaments for my students this fall.  This seaon, we will be getting players from New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Texas, and other states to join us.  If you are visiting Ohio or would like to travel here to play in one of our tournaments, we would love to have you join us.  These practice tournaments will help you learn to overcome tournament pressure and play relaxed in a competitive environment:
Entry Form:  http://omnipong.com/EntryForms/1016-22.pdf
Player Listing:  http://omnipong.com/T-tourney.asp?t=102&r=347&h=