Beer pong (paddle game)

[2] An Alpha Phi Delta fraternity alumnus, David Thielscher, class of 1954, recalled in an interview for The Dartmouth newspaper that beer pong was played when he was an undergraduate.

One of the earliest published photographs depicting a game of pong appeared in Dartmouth's 1968 yearbook Aegis (page 304).

[6] In the early 1970s, Dartmouth College briefly sanctioned the game as an intramural sport, making it the only college-sponsored drinking contest in the country.

[7][8] This official derecognition did not reduce beer pong activity at Dartmouth or elsewhere, but would lead to many new variations on the game.

[9] According to a 1999 article in The New York Times, pong "has been part of fraternity life for at least 40 years, as hallowed as rush or Winter Carnival".

[3] An article in the March, 1986 issue of Playboy magazine describes slam pong being played by the brothers of Psi Upsilon at Dartmouth.

"Beer pong and similar drinking games are not played solely to achieve inebriation, Alverson finds, but instead serve as a competitive outlet for high-achieving students, and a structured atmosphere for peer interaction.

"[18] Critics of beer pong contend that, regardless of their social nature, the games encourage binge drinking, and should be discouraged.