Carolina Clash serves up opportunity for table tennis in South Carolina

Table tennis, aka ping pong, is a sport that not many in South Carolina and the Southeast think about.  

Thursday night brought an event that looked to change that.  

The inaugural Carolina Clash was a competition that saw players from the Columbia-based Carolina Pong club face off against those from the Charlotte Table Tennis Club. The event was held at Ambrosia Taverna on Columbia’s Main Street. The night was filled with intense, competitive play as some of the best players from North and South Carolina battled for glory.  

The event consisted of six singles matches and one doubles match. Each match was three games played to 11 points, with each game won earning that team a point. After those matches came the Golden Game format, in which each team selected a member to play two serves each before switching to the next set.  

Whoever reached 30 points first would be the winner. After falling behind early, Team South Carolina rallied and won the tournament 30-27 in a tightly contested matchup.  

And while the spoils went to the victor, the true goal of the Clash was more to raise awareness for the sport of table tennis in the Carolinas. 

“I got the idea for the Carolina Clash because table tennis players aren’t used to people watching and spectating, but they want it like anybody would,” said Carolina Pong president Tripp Roche. 

Roche is a freshman at Midlands Technical College and a former high school tennis player. His love for table tennis started when his grandfather brought a table into the family’s restaurant, Villa Tronco, and began playing casually. He quickly became one of the best players in Columbia. 

“I’m always trying to be on the table,” Roche said. “I train with other people, mainly the top players in the city. But I also give lessons (in the restaurant). I want to get the lower-rated players better as well.” 

 Between starting college and working in the restaurant, Roche founded Carolina Pong with Boris Balonos, a retired U.S. Army Command Sgt, Maj. and an avid ping pong player.  

“It’s one of those sports that not everybody likes to play,” Balonos said. “You have to have a desire.” 

Balonos played during his youth and found the love of the sport again during his service in places such as South Korea, Hawaii and Germany. He met many of the best players in the world, including the South Korean Olympic table tennis coach.  

After retiring to the Columbia area in 2019, Balonos was approached by Roche in 2024 with the idea of forming the club. 

“And I said, ‘Tripp, you know what? I think that’s a viable option. We should do it,’” Balonos said. 

They started the club this past June, operating out of the St. Andrews Recreation Center. Carolina Pong offers both recreational and competitive play styles for members. 

“I can’t believe we’ve come this far,” said Carolina Pong member Kris Likit-Anaurak. “Everybody in the club helps each other.” 

Likit-Anaurak is from Thailand and has played the sport since he was 6. He used to play professionally before coming to South Carolina for college. He has since become one of the best club players in the state and enjoys the less stressful life that comes with it.  

“For professional life, you practice eight hours a day like it’s a full-time job,” Likit-Anaurak said. “But in club life, you play for exercise, and it’s good for your health.” 

That’s a sentiment that is shared by the artistic director of The Palmetto Opera and fellow Carolina Pong member, Dr. Peter Barton. 

“It’s a wonderful exercise,” said Barton. “It’s a kind of sport where it keeps your brain focused. There’s a wonderful camaraderie, and it will keep you in shape.”   

The goal of events like the Carolina Clash is to spark more interest in the globally popular sport. 

“This is something that I would like to do in Charlotte with my own club,” said Charlotte Table Tennis member Cameron Smith.

Smith, one of the top 10 players in North Carolina, sees the potential for more of these events in the future. 

“The more we can do stuff like this, the more regular people we can get doing it and it becomes more enjoyable,” Smith said.  

In addition to expanding the club to multiple cities (with one already in Lexington), Roche hopes to hold even larger events to spread the love of table tennis. 

“We’re planning the South Carolina State Championships, which have not happened since the 1980s,” Roche said. “And then eventually, we want to host a national-level tournament at the convention center.” 

Carolina Pong meets each Monday from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in St. Andrews gym, with all ages and skill levels welcomed.