Tom Daniel

**This Texas family is kept by Table tennis together** Aug. 17--Todd and Cheryl Friend have been training their teenage son, Chance, for nearly 17 decades. But on Saturday, Chance got his chance to tell. The 16-year-old table tennis phenom spent the day giving pointers to Dad, Mother and the rest of the Friend family, which also includes MacKenzie, 13, and Spencer, at the annual Decatur Open in the Aquadome Recreation Center. => All best of Ping pong paddle here: **[http://bestpingpongpaddles.com](http://bestpingpongpaddles.com)** "I try to help out as far as I can, but my brother really does not like for me to coach him," said Chance, who is the country's sixth-ranked junior table tennis player. Chance's sister doesn't take her brother's advice either. "Occasionally I like to do the specific contrary of what he tells me to do," MacKenzie said with a snicker. Despite the occasional bickering between siblings, there is 1 thing this Plano, Texas, household can agree upon: "It is fun for the whole family," Todd explained. "It is always good to win, but you need to be a good sport. As long as you gave it your very best match, you are always going to come out on top." The Friends that are ping pong-playing spend most of their weekends traveling despite soaring gas prices across the nation. The drive from Plano to Decatur -- roughly 650 miles -- costs. The family relocated to cut down on expenditures. The movement got to Texas-Wesleyan, which has won seven out the eight intercollegiate championships. Chance received a single scholarship for table tennis and another because of his 4.0 grade point average, and that will allow him to travel without putting a dent in his daddy's wallet.  "This really is a fantastic opportunity for him because he can go to more tournaments," Todd said. "We won't have to attend as many tournaments just to get him there." Chance will combine other elite table tennis players when he begins college this week -- one year ahead of schedule. All of his teammates have points ratings of 2,400 and above. The evaluation of chance is 2,410. "Chance was given a present, and he has worked vary hard. He has been given talent and understanding, and he has worked hard to develop it and groom it," Todd explained. "His goal is to be ranked No. 1 and also to go further than any other American has in the sport. I think he's likely to do it." Chance sees himself going far in the game of **[ping pong table top](http://bestpingpongpaddles.com/tables-reviews/)**, as far away as London for the 2012 Olympics. "Right now, I only upped my bodily training with more running, sit-ups, push-ups and extending. I am spending an average of 40 hours per week on the dining table as well as the physical endurance training," he explained. Spencer said it would be "pretty awesome" to watch his big brother in the Olympics. "If I wanted an autograph, I wouldn't have to work too difficult to get it," he explained with a laugh. When talking about her oldest child representing the United States Cheryl swells with pride. "We are hoping," she said as she watched him practice several feet away, his powerful shots frequently too hard to manage for the opposing player.  There was a time when he wouldn't even get a paddle, although Chance is just one of the players in the country. "We used to have a table in our basement, and I think, as a family we probably used it to get a total of 30 minutes. We particularly could not get Chance to perform," Todd explained. "He had a friend who'd come over a great deal, and the friend would want to play ping pong because he understood that he could beat Chance. Well, Chance asked me to teach him how to play and eventually came to me one day . Chance was impressed with my skills although I sort of goofed around with him , once we started to play. I thought it was amusing because I really don't have any skills. "But we went outside and found a club, and Chance was instantly mesmerized. Now, he eats, sleeps and drinks the game" Chance moved from being a newcomer to a 2,400-rated player in just 52 months. "We have checked documents, and we can not find anybody else that realized that so fast," Cheryl said. "He has done what nobody else has ever achieved." => Read more: **[Best Ping Pong Robot/Machine & How To Choose](https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/best-ping-pong-robots-ping-pong-sport/)** Regardless of the immediate fame in the table tennis world, Cheryl said Chance is "very approachable" and is quick to practice with a complete stranger."The sport is a family on the planet," Chance said. "Everybody has an enjoyable time playing, and the people you don't know, you'll meet. It is a fairly cool thing."For more information of The Decatur Daily, or to subscribe to the newspaper.