Clayton Kershaw Hosts 4th Annual “Ping Pong for Purpose” Tournament

With the Los Angeles Dodgers having an off-day on Thursday, stud pitcher and all around amazing person Clayton Kershaw hosted his 4th annual “Ping Pong For Purpose” tournament. This tournament is tied to Kersh’s foundation that he runs with his wife Ellen called “Kershaw’s Challenge” and every year, the festivities draw many notable athletes and celebrities to Dodger Stadium for a good cause.

“Kershaw’s Challenge” was a big factor in Clayton taking home the Roberto Clemente award in 2012. The award is handed out to the player who “best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement and the individual’s contribution to the team.” You would be hard pressed to find someone who better represents all of those qualities than Kershaw as the mission statement of “Kershaw’s Challenge” is:

Kershaw’s Challenge is a Christ-centered, others-focused organization. We exist to encourage people to use whatever God-given passion or talent they have to make a difference and give back to people in need. We want to empower people to use their spheres of influence to positively impact communities and to expand God’s Kingdom. We believe that God can transform at-risk children and neighborhoods through the benevolence and impact of others.

For all four years that this tournament has taken place, many of Kershaw’s Dodger teammates have come and tried to take the title of “Best Ping-Ponger” and even if they didn’t win, I suppose that whole being charitable thing is pretty important too.

It's here! Counting down the hours until #PingPong4Purpose. pic.twitter.com/1WHy8RKEdH

— Kershaw's Challenge (@KershsChallenge) August 11, 2016

Ping-pong seems to be a constant in the Dodgers locker room as in addition to this tournament, the team has an in-house doubles tournament during Spring Training. This past year, Kershaw himself and Corey Seager took home the gold. However, Seager will not have a chance to defend his belt on Thursday night after taking a pitch off the wrist in a game against the Philadelphia Phillies.

This is probably for the best as it exercising as much caution as possible with the phenom shortstop seems like the best course of action.

The stars came out in full force on Thursday as the night got underway. Kershaw’s teammates came out as well as actors Will Ferrell and Mario Lopez.

Best part of night, beating @AJEllis17 and @ChrisRose at @ClaytonKersh22 Ping Pong 4 Purpose. #KershawsChallenge pic.twitter.com/UdNyISoJUF

— Adrián González (@Adrian_ElTitan) August 12, 2016

Lets take a look at some of the best moments from the night:

#PingPong4Purpose with my life partner! https://t.co/4lvS3GKQFH pic.twitter.com/RiB9p9OaPd

— Enrique Hernández (@kikehndez) August 12, 2016

Will Ferrell kicking off the night #PingPong4Purpose pic.twitter.com/LIujCfgXcs

— Kershaw's Challenge (@KershsChallenge) August 12, 2016

BFFs. #PingPong4Purpose pic.twitter.com/EAKKZhyjHL

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) August 12, 2016

The dream team @MarioLopezExtra & @Adrian_EITitan #PingPong4Purpose pic.twitter.com/uB7IRQmon3

— Kershaw's Challenge (@KershsChallenge) August 12, 2016

.@kikehndez and @tytoff16 vs. Roberts and Honeycutt #PingPong4Purpose pic.twitter.com/oAAdlfaM96

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) August 12, 2016

https://twitter.com/redturn2/status/764165741218103296

Time for the finals… #PingPong4Purpose pic.twitter.com/Gn2CAQ56Z2

— Kershaw's Challenge (@KershsChallenge) August 12, 2016

Tonight's winners! #PingPong4Purpose pic.twitter.com/Hr5HSVXtoO

— Kershaw's Challenge (@KershsChallenge) August 12, 2016

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