Dare to Be a Winner : Challenge Puts Trung Nguyen in Key Position to Help Ocean View in Badminton

HUNTINGTON BEACH — Trung Nguyen began playing badminton on a bet.

His friend, Hoang Nguyen, a member of Ocean View’s badminton team, pestered Trung about joining the squad throughout their freshman and sophomore years. When Huang finally bet Trung $50 he wouldn’t come out for the team as a junior, Trung took the bet.

And won. Much to the delight of Ocean View Coach Tom Carroll.

“It is amazing that he has only been playing for two years and is so good,” Carroll said. “But he spends a lot of time working on his game and worked out a lot this summer.”

Nguyen, a senior, plays doubles and mixed doubles. He has helped Ocean View to the No. 4 seeding in the Southern Section Division I team playoffs, which begin Tuesday when the Sea Hawks host Rowland Heights Rowland.

In section individual competition, Nguyen and his partner Phong Vo are seeded second in boys’ doubles, which will be contested today at the Orange County Badminton Club in Orange.

“I think [Vo and I] have a really good chance of winning it all. We have beaten all the teams we will have to face,” Nguyen said.

In mixed doubles, Nguyen and Tien Le upset third-seeded team from Alhambra Keppel, 13-15, 15-11, 15-8 in the quarterfinals, but lost in the semifinals to unseeded Cong Phung and Tammy Pham of West Covina, 10-15, 15-7, 16-14. Phung and Pham advanced to the semifinals by upsetting the second-seeded team from Alta Loma in the quarterfinals.

Nguyen never thought he would make varsity his first time out as a junior, but his smart play and hard work helped him rise quickly.

At 19, he is a slight 5 feet 5, 130 pounds. While his partner, Vo, relies on strength and power, Nguyen complements with finesse and quickness.

“He’s the power player and I’m the thinker,” Nguyen said. “I have good vision of the court and think about where to place my shot and just keeping the bird in play.”

Nguyen, who moved with his family to Westminster from Vietnam in 1987, tried to strengthen his shot by lifting weights earlier this year, but the plan backfired.

“It made me miss shots,” he said. “I wish I had more power, but I rely on being smart instead.”

His dedication is what Carroll sees as Nguyen’s main strength. He spent his free time this past summer working out with a number of coaches and playing in every tournament he could find. He practiced at least two hours a day, four days a week. He watched the techniques of his coaches and spent his time trying to copy their shots.

Nguyen, a perfectionist when it comes to badminton, sometimes gets frustrated by some of his teammates’ lack of enthusiasm.

“It is really hard sometimes,” he said. “We have a good chance to win this year, but some of the team doesn’t seem to care. While we practice, they just sit around and complain that they are tired. I ask them to get up. I try, but sometimes I just get really [mad] at them.

For Ocean View to win the section team title, they not only have to get past top-seeded Diamond Bar but also perennial power Keppel. Both teams handed the Sea Hawks early-season losses.

“When we played Diamond Bar early, we had a lot of injuries and some people sick,” Carroll said. “So this time should be different. But then of course, there is Keppel.”

No matter what happens to his team in his final season, Nguyen plans to continue playing badminton at least for recreation.

“But I do regret not playing my freshman and sophomore years,” he said.