Claiming to have mastered the art of table tennis with an unstoppable forehand top-spin stroke, my paddle, record and heart were shattered within moments of joining a new club.

This week, I studied the notes I took in high school physical education class (I was an overachiever) and headed out to join the NIU Table Tennis club.

The club formed two years ago as an outlet for those who want to practice their table tennis skills. The club has three meetings per week at the Rec Center: 2 to 4 p.m. Wednesday, 5:30 to 8 p.m. Friday and 8 to 10 p.m. Sunday. The group usually sees five to 10 steady members at each meeting.

“I joined the club to learn to play the game a bit better than I do already by learning from the more experienced players in the club,” Orlando Mancera, junior accountancy major, said.

The game starts with one player catching the ball as it rolls off the table. If the other player guesses correctly which hand caught the ball, he or she serves first.

I had a coin in my pocket, but I’m not one to be logical.

Each matchup is decided with a best-of-five set. The game’s point system officially changed in 2001 from playing up to 21 points to only 11. This is too bad, because it takes me a long time to get warmed up. In fact, I’m still warming up.

The neat thing about this group is that its members do not verbally challenge a player. If one member wishes to play another, he or she places a paddle under the side of the table the challenger is playing at.

I prefer a glove slap to the face to challenge someone to a duel.

Table tennis is something that needs to be learned from consistent practice, which is why the more experienced members of the group teach the novice players certain techniques they can expand on.

“I’m probably twice as good now,” Rob Schalberg, a junior math education major, said. “They coach us and show us different forms that we can use.”

Every player has his or her own style of serving. One player threw the ball an extra five feet in the air, another raised his ball in an almost sacrificial manner and another laid on the ground and used his feet to serve … OK, that last thing didn’t happen, but you get the point.

To gain a better perspective, I played four members of the group in a no-holds-barred table tennis match. Out of the 15 matches played, I lost all 15. One player even took pity on me and lobbed the ball over the table mockingly. Thank you, Orlando – you’re a good man.

“The amount of potential we have in the club is unreal,” said Kevin Kuchar, NIU Table Tennis treasurer.

After the intense rump-kicking I received, I blamed my loss on one thing: the lack of wristbands and table tennis gear. It prevented the intense table tennis animal inside me from coming out.

Maybe next week I’ll bust out the junk rubber and lay a drop shot at game point … or just sit at home and watch Forrest Gump for tips.

Columns reflect the opinion of the author and not necessarily of the Northern Star staff.