In January, IndyCar driver Josef Newgarden issued a formal ping pong challenge to Detroit Lions wide receiver Golden Tate. Wednesday night, Tate accepted the challenge.
Newgarden came prepared with his own paddle: a sure sign he was not playing around. To make it interesting, the pair decided to put some money on it. The loser had to donate $2500 to the charity of the winner's choice.
When all was said and done, it was Tate talking about the check he would be writing to Newgarden's charity: Serious Fun. Newgarden beat Tate in two games, with the second one going to sudden death.
Tate and Newgarden attended the same high school in Tennessee, and haven't really seen each other since. Both of them have kept up with the other's career and neither of them are shy about their ping pong proficiency. They both played in high school, but haven't played each other since then.
Tate said he wasn't very confident heading into the showdown, as he has been lacking a partner to practice with during the offseason. He gets plenty of practice on the ping pong table in the Lions locker room during the season.
Despite the loss, Tate said it was all in good fun. He said he would like to make it an annual thing.
