A left handed playing style must offer some unique advantages to table

Question

A left handed playing style must offer some unique advantages to table tennis players, maybe in the types of angles they are able to incorporate in their shots. In a survey of professional table tennis players, as many as 70 percent said that they played left handed.

Which of the following is an assumption in the above argument?

(A) Playing left handed allows table tennis players to create some angles in their shots that cannot be created playing right handed.

(B) Table tennis is the most popular sport in several parts of the world because one doesn’t need expensive equipment or lots of space to play it.

(C) Most tennis players covered in the survey had the option of playing right handed or left handed.

(D) Most players of lawn tennis, a sport somewhat similar to table tennis, also play left handed.

(E) Most tennis players covered in the survey used their left hand for other activities as well such as writing or eating.

This is a  CR Butler Question

Check the links to other Butler Projects:

Data Sufficiency Butler  
  Problem Solving Butler  
  Reading Comprehension Butler  
  Data Insights Butler

Calista_Pro · Answer

Hi, I don't understand why C is an assumption and not A; can someone explain please?

SwethaReddyL · Answer

@KarishmaB/ @Bunuel / @BB, can you please explain how the answer is C and not A

surajexp · Answer

Calista_Pro , here is my 2 cents

Option A is just a restatement of the premise of the argument with an additional piece of information. And as stated in the argument that playing left handed "may incorporate angles in shots" which could be a possibility not certainty. Therefore if we negate the option A by saying that "playing left handed doesn't allow the player to create some angle" the conclusion still holds.

Whereas if we negate the option C by saying that "no tennis player in the survey had the option of playing left or right handed" then this negation tells us that the players had a mandate to play with left hand only despite of getting any advantage by playing with the same handed style and the conclusion falls apart. Therefore option C is the valid assumption.

I hope I clear your doubts.

aryanrgupta · Answer

Option C says: Most  tennis  players covered in the survey had the option of playing right handed or left handed.

So I thought its out of scope as the premise is about Table Tennis

Budhaditya_Saha · Answer

According to me,
The conclusion is that “left handed players must have some advantages in table tennis”

The supporting statement to this conclusion is that left handed players generate some type of angles which give them the advantage

So now with option A) If we negate this option then it means the right handed players also are able to generate the angles. Thus no advantage will be there for left handed players.

Now professional players are bound to be good players. Hence 70% of pro players are left handed.

This is my take on this.
Please explain why C is correct and A is not.

bestreturn · Answer

The premise stated that “may be” it’s the angle, so the author is not certain what kind of advantage left-handed playing style gives. So even if this aspect is negated, there can still be other advantages that left-handed playing style has and doesn’t destroy conclusion

As for why C is correct, if players doesn’t have option to play with right hand, it would mean that they are forced to use left hand for some other reasons not related to advantages in the game such as them being left handed, which would destroy conclusion that they play left hand because of advantage

Bunuel · Answer

Official Explanation

Answer: C

The above argument states that most professional tennis players play left handed. From this, we can conclude that this must be so because playing left handed provides these players with some unique benefits. But what if these players were naturally left handed? Then they haven’t really ‘chosen’ to play left handed, it just happens to be their dominant hand. The argument assumes that this is not the case—that these players actually had the option of playing right handed or left handed and they have chosen to play left handed.  C states this best and should be the correct answer.

(A) The argument only conjectures that playing left handed may allow players to create certain angles in their shots. For all we know, it may be providing them some other benefit. The question is whether the players have chosen to play left handed and not what benefits it provides.

(B) The popularity of table tennis is of no consequence to the argument.

(D) What happens in lawn tennis is not relevant to our argument. In any case, the question is whether these players have chosen to play left handed.

(E) This actually weakens the argument by suggesting that the left hand happens to be the dominant hand of these players.

untillllifoundyou · Answer

hey Calista this my humble opionion

the conclusion is "  In a survey of professional table tennis players, as many as 70 percent said that they played left handed.  "
 and this conclusion can only stand if people had a choice to choose which hand to use.
if they had no choice and if they were naturally left handed then the survey is not a strong piece of evidence as its respondents were coincidentally left handed.

but the survey isn't and the author ASSUMES that if professionals could choose they'd play w their left hand

Hope this helps

AnujSingh0147 · Answer

Hi!

In order to assess the argument, we need to understand its structure first.

Left hand style -- must offer -- unique advantage to TT players -- angle incorporate in shot. ----> CONCLUSION
Survey of TT players -- 70% say they played left-handed.

Underlying statement (In order for conclusion to be true): The TT players choose to play with left hand to gain unique advantage.

Option A, cannot be an assumption because assumption defined as "Something that is unstated but has to be true in order for conclusion to be true"
Here, whatever is in option A is a (restatement + Inference) drawn from the conclusion only and premise play no role.

Whereas, while answering assumption one must need to bridge the gap between Premise and Conclusion - Therefore, option A has to be rejected.

Why Option C:

look at the underlying statement "Player choose" - He have the option to play with right hand is the inference here and bridges the gap between Premise and Conclusion.

boat32674 · Answer

(C) Most tennis players covered in the survey had the option of playing right handed or left handed.

Could have been because lefty are advantage so there are more professional table tennis player with left hand. This doesn't require optional of hand use to be true.

Answer should not be C

A left handed playing style must offer some unique advantages to table

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards

GMAT Critical Reasoning (CR) Questions

A left handed playing style must offer some unique advantages to table

Prep Toolkit

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards