Left handed: Stick with penhold?

I learned to play as penhold since the best players I had access to were all Chinese national transfer students.

But... I'm left handed, and noticed that this leads to a lot of backhand defense from righties attacking cross-table. With penhold, my backhand leaves something to be desired. My forehand loop is extremely hard for righties to deal with, but facing an offensive player can be downright frustrating.

Am I better off sticking with penhold, or is it worth the time it'd take for me to learn the shakehand grip?

For reference, I've only been playing for about a year.

Hi Zane,

This is an interesting one.  I would go with the grip that feels comfortable for you.  If you are currently playing with the penhold grip that would probably be the shakehand grip.  Since you have only been playing for a year it isn't too late to change but I would probably persevere with the penhold grip.

One thing that we left handers need to learn is the backhand down the line so that it goes to the backhand of the opposition right hander.

Work hard on your backhand.  It is a little more difficult but it is something that can be done well with practice.