favorite brand of balls?

[tennis ace]

My favorite brand of balls is penn. what is your favorite brand of balls.

[gmlasam]

Dunlop Championship Extra Duty.

[tennisnj]

Dunlop but for some reason in my area @ the courts, there's a stigma against using them. People are afraid to change from Penn or Wilson.

[Kirko]

slazenger .

[K!ck5w3rvE]

Slazenger. I've excreted better things than Penn balls. Urgh.

[equinox]

slazenger hardcourt.

NOT grass!

[tennisnj]

What is with Penn balls? Lately their durability has been that of practice balls. Has anyone else noticed this?

[Volkano]

Roland Garros (made by Major Sports) - Clay and Hard court versions. Found both to be very durable (and consistent) on hard courts and the ball bearing inside really seems to help with net cords :)

[Fatmike]

I like wilson championship

[Jet Rink]

Dunlop - especially, when you can find 'em, the Grand Prix. Excellent balls that really hold up over time.

Jet

[Richie Rich]

wilson championship? the same balls that are bald as potatoes after a 5 minute hitting session? you are joking right, fatmike?

Dunlop grand prix, salz hard court, tecnifibre (major) are all far superior to wilson championship.

however, i guess to each his own. someone has to like the wilson championship balls or they wouldn't sell them.

[activentures]

slazenger.....

[danniflava]

Wilson US Open balls.

[Rory G]

for me it is Penn soft court (red) although I really liked the Dunlop Grand Prix balls. They don't sell Slazenger in my area but would like to try.

[acedu]

I have to say tretorn i played with them on thenike junior tour .

[Tennis_baller]

Yeah, tretorn.

[tennis ace]

My 2nd favorate are dunlop extra duty.

[Mike Cottrill]

Tretorn pressureless for ball machine. Consistent bounce, longevity and have lots of nap on them.

Lately like the Wilson for match play. Seem to play softer than Penn.

[tennisadict]

wilson us open baby

[Fatmike]

wilson championship? the same balls that are bald as potatoes after a 5 minute hitting session? you are joking right, fatmike?

Dunlop grand prix, salz hard court, tecnifibre (major) are all far superior to wilson championship.

however, i guess to each his own. someone has to like the wilson championship balls or they wouldn't sell them.


Bald balls???
I think that the WC are the one who keep the pressure the most (amongst the ones I tried)

[Richie Rich]

WC keep pressure well. However, I find they always lose the fluff and become bald very fast - much faster than Dunlops, Slazengers, Tecnifibre. This causes the balls to fly more and are harder to control. They are light to begin with so this makes them even more so. Just not a good durable ball, IMO.

[Ronaldo]

20 yr old Tretorns as bald as most 3.5 seniors. Love that look when I whip that box of old Tretorns out. Guys elbows just shrivel up just looking at those rox. Old school pain. Seriously, Dunlop or Nassau balls will do

[MonkeyPox]

Penn all the way. Dunlop are lively, for two seconds and then dead. Wilsons are just rocklike and I ain't feelin' it. Don't know enough to say about the Slazeys.

[tennisnj]

Haven't had a good can of Penn here in New Jersey since the 90's. I just don't understand why that is! They're always rock-like. Has anyone else noticed the price of tennis balls in the past few months has risen from $1.89 to $2.39 for regular duty @ places like Sports Authority?

[gmlasam]

Haven't had a good can of Penn here in New Jersey since the 90's. I just don't understand why that is! They're always rock-like. Has anyone else noticed the price of tennis balls in the past few months has risen from $1.89 to $2.39 for regular duty @ places like Sports Authority?
At your local big 5 sporting goods always have tennis balls on sale every week for less than 2 bucks. Also, at racket doctor, the pro tennis shop in my area, sells tennis balls for $1.99 regular price, this is the Dunlop championship which is by far the most durable compared to Penn and Wilson championship. The dunlop does not fuzz up and loose its felt as quickly and retains pressure much longer.

[TheRed]

gmlasam,
I agree w/ everything you said but the problem is Big5 is a west coast chain. I'm from CA but I live in NJ now. I think balls, in general, are just a bit more expensive in the east coast

[tennisnj]

Very difficult to find a chain sporting goods store that carries Dunlop tennis balls. I refuse to go to Tennis specialty stores in my area & pay $3 for a can of any type of tennis balls also.

[backcourt]

Dunlop Championship, last longer and play better than penn or wilson. Also where I live you have a good chance of being the only court using them b/c everyone uses Penns. Two out of the last two times I've played the court next door has had the same no. Penn's we were using.

[aj_m2009]

Out of the few brands that I have used I liked the Gamma tennis balls. Not sure what they were called but they kept their bounce for a long time, the only down side was that it got kinda bald but still, great ball.

[Nubarron]

I like the Dunlop GP's. They are heavier than others (which some people don't like) but they last long and have a consistent bounce

[Boja]

I like Dunlop Grand Prix as well. I like the feel, and the rubber lines(?) on them are thin, which is a plus for me.

I'm not 100% sure, but aren't Slazenger and Dunlop the same company?

[Brent Pederson]

Dunlops seem to keep their pressure the longest. Penns seem to keep it the shortest. IMO it seems the quality control on all brands has gone downhill in the last couple years, lots of ripples in the felt and other abnormalities from all brands I've tried.

[monologuist]

has anyone had problems with under-pressurized cans of Dunlop Grand Prix? I ordered a case from TW and every 3rd or 4th can doesn't "fizz", and the balls are flat.

[gmlasam]

I like Dunlop Grand Prix as well. I like the feel, and the rubber lines(?) on them are thin, which is a plus for me.

I'm not 100% sure, but aren't Slazenger and Dunlop the same company? Yes, they are. Slazengers are Dunlops that are just renamed.

[Young Siward]

At your local big 5 sporting goods always have tennis balls on sale every week for less than 2 bucks. Also, at racket doctor, the pro tennis shop in my area, sells tennis balls for $1.99 regular price, this is the Dunlop championship which is by far the most durable compared to Penn and Wilson championship. The dunlop does not fuzz up and loose its felt as quickly and retains pressure much longer.

I can only hope that it's $2 for a single ball. It makes my cry to think I can't get any decent balls for less than €6 p/can, which is $8/9!

[gmlasam]

I can only hope that it's $2 for a single ball. It makes my cry to think I can't get any decent balls for less than €6 p/can, which is $8/9!Wow!! I wonder how much are your gas prices. It is about $2.34 a gallon here.

[bee]

My favorites are the ProPenn regular duty balls. But, as suggested, the quality seems to have dropped. Last summer we went through a time when about every 5th or 6th can was dead. Not having that problem now. I do like these balls because they have a solid and heavy feel to them. Don't like a soft and mushy feel.

[monologuist]

gmlasam....racket doctor sells the Dunlop Grnd Prix balls for 1.99$ a can?! That sounds too low! are you sure? if it's true, what I am I doing buying them from TW?!

[BreakPoint]

Dunlop Championship are excellent. Long lasting felt and the pressure lasts longer than others. Some people (especially women) refuse to use them because they are a bit heavier and harder than regular Penns or Wilsons. They would be a little tougher to play with for people used to the lighter and softer Penn and Wilsons. ProPenn balls are also very good and long lasting. Even Penn Championship balls are OK for an everyday ball.

Balls I don't like are Wilson US Open and Wilson Championship. The US Open balls fuzz up really quickly and they become way too soft and slow. I think for this reason, women tend to like them for mixed doubles. Wilson Championship were good in the '70's and 80's but then went downhill to become almost unusable. They last like two games. However, I've noticed they've gotten better recently so now I think they are almost as good as regular Penns. I also don't really like the Dunlop Grand Prixs. They are as hard as rocks when you first open the can, and the funky flourescent yellow color is a bit strange. I do admit they last a very long time though. But it's like hitting baseballs.

[TennisDoc09]

Slazenger tennis balls are the best IMO. They just maintain their pressure so well even after hitting with them for a long time. Pleeaase start to carry them Tennis Warehouse :D !

[Russell Finch]

Wow!! I wonder how much are your gas prices. It is about $2.34 a gallon here.

In England it's about $7.20 per gallon - about 70% of that goes straight to the government in tax. Tennis balls are £7 or £8 per can of 4 - around $13 or $14. Now you Americans might understand why £130 for a Vantage seems reasonable to us. That's the price of 3 tankfuls of petrol.

[ChrisNC]

I use the Dunlop Championships. I buy them @ Wal-Mart for $7.78 for a 4-can pack (12 balls total).

[gmlasam]

gmlasam....racket doctor sells the Dunlop Grnd Prix balls for 1.99$ a can?! That sounds too low! are you sure? if it's true, what I am I doing buying them from TW?!
No. They sell the Dunlop Championship Extra duty for $1.99. I never said Dunlop Grand Prix.

[Young Siward]

Right that's it. Time to get TW to ship balls to Europe. Has to be done.

BTW, I quite like Wilson US Open. Not hugely durable on the asphalt surface down the local club, but consistent enough. They're very good on Omnicourt.

[BreakPoint]

Over the holidays, Sportsmart (same as Sports Authority) had Holiday 8-packs of Penn Championship balls for $15.99 per 8 cans. They would also periodically have 25% off coupons in the newspaper. So I would just wait until I saw one of these coupons and then bought the 8-packs. These 8-packs also had a $3 mail-in rebate on them. So my net cost was $8.99 per 8-pack or only $1.12 per can of three balls before sales tax or net $1.22 after tax! :) So I stocked up and bought over 50 cans over a period of several weeks (each coupon was good for only one item). I think I'm set for the rest of the year on balls.

[theace21]

Penn balls seem to be the choice in my area.

[10s99]

after playing with penn and wilson for a lifetime, i am a happy dunlop convert. they last longer - i've never thoght they were dead even after 5 sets.

[dmagalhaes]

Sports Authority has the Dunlop Championship 4 ball 4 pack for 10 bucks.

[erik-the-red]

I buy which ever is cheaper - numbered Penns or numbered Wilsons.

[fastdunn]

My favorite is Dunlop Absorber which has slightly better feel than GP and always
last the longest.

The thing is, though, my favorite ball seems to keep changing.
I used to love Penn but now I can't play with it. I used to hate ProPenn but
I'm OK with it. I'm also fine with Wilson US Open.

[wtennis206]

i like proPenn

[dewey4262]

Dunlop/Slazneger.

[ragnaROK]

Dunlop Abzorber or Grand Prix. I've also tried some balls under the Slaz name and they were good as well.

[Bliss]

wilson championship

[silverwyvern4]

has anyone had problems with under-pressurized cans of Dunlop Grand Prix? I ordered a case from TW and every 3rd or 4th can doesn't "fizz", and the balls are flat.
I stopped using Dunlop balls after every single can in an 8 pack was full of flat balls!

[Deuce]

Many people complaining of a fairly recent decline in quality of Penn balls. Don't forget that Penn became part of Head a few years ago...

20 years ago, each company had one 'model' of ball. Yes, there were hard court balls and clay court balls - but that was it. Now, there are morning balls, night balls, balls for Tuesdays with full moons, etc. 20 years ago, ALL balls were quality balls. There were differences between the Penns and Wilsons and Dunlops, etc. - but they were all top notch. Today, companies deliberately produce crappy, low quality balls simply in order to make their regular balls (same quality as 20 years ago) appear to be better than they are. Also, as people have mentioned, the companies screw with the quality of a particular ball from year to year, while keeping the 'model' name unchanged. Wilson Championships, for instance, used to be really good balls. Now, they're crap. Penn Championship were good. Now they're less good. The quality of the balls changes - but the name stays the same.

Give me the simplicity of the 80s any day...

[Craig Sheppard]

Wilson Championships, for instance, used to be really good balls. Now, they're crap. Penn Championship were good. Now they're less good. The quality of the balls changes - but the name stays the same.

Yep Deuce--do you remember when Wilson Championship had green lettering on the ball? It used to be the green lettered balls were Extra Duty, the black lettered balls Regular Duty. Now they're all black--and that's when they started going downhill, IMO. The green-lettered balls from years ago seemed to be much better than today's.

[BreakPoint]

Wilson Championship balls seem to be on a rebound (no pun intended). I agree, they were great in the 70's and 80's but went downhill sometime in the mid-90's or so. Just a couple of years ago, I found Wilson Championship balls to be almost unplayable. They'd wear out even before the warm-up was over!

But recently, they seemed to have improved to almost where they used to be. The ones in the new red cans seem to be pretty decent balls, at least on par with the way Penns used to be. Yes, they're the ones with the black lettering (Extra Duty). I played a long match last night with them and they were fine even after the match.

BTW, I also have noticed that Penn Championship balls have dropped a notch in durability recently.

[bookem]

From the variety and breadth of responses, two things seem to stand out to me:
1. There isn't any one overwhelming favorite brand, let alone model.
2. Preferences seem to be based upon felt durability.

As for #2, there was a previous thread which asked the same question but surface oriented, i.e. "What is the best ball for hard courts?".

I would also add geographic factors such as humidity and altitude. I'm in the tropics and have found Penn ATPs to be the longest lasting. Wilson felt just fluffs up quickly (within 1 set) and becomes unplayable after one match.

On a side note, be thankful for the discussion on ball prices at Big 5, Sports Authority, et al. As our European friends have noted, balls overseas (as well as gas prices) are quite high. I may delight in seeing $2.39 at Kmart for Penn Championships but know that my buddy in Japan pays double that for two balls since they're packaged 2/can.

For all the Dunlop praisers, "Wilson is returning" espousers, and "Penn sucks" detractors, here is some manufacturing info according to the ITF:

Dunlop Championships (all models) - Philippines
Dunlop Grand Prix (all models) - Philippines
Penn ATP - USA
Penn Championship (except Red & Black Seal) - USA
Penn Championship (Red & Black Seal) - Argentina
Pro Penn - USA
Wilson Championship - primarily Thailand, some People's Republic of China
Wilson US Open - primarily Thailand, some People's Republic of China

[bigserving]

No one mentioned Prince balls.

Has anyone tried or have an opinion about them?

[Steve F.]

I'll cast another ballot for Dunlop Grand Prix, then Championship. The grand prix's do play a bit harder, but the durability is excellent. Around my neck of the woods, Penn is about all you can find in stores, so that's what you'll find on the courts. Completely agree with the decline in quality from Penn. They go so flat no one bothers bringing them home once the can is opened. re: Dunlop - Dropped into ******* the other day and noticed a guy clean out the place of Dunlop Championship balls, he must have stacked 20 cans into a handbasket.

[Deuce]

Wilson Championship balls seem to be on a rebound (no pun intended). I agree, they were great in the 70's and 80's but went downhill sometime in the mid-90's or so. Just a couple of years ago, I found Wilson Championship balls to be almost unplayable. They'd wear out even before the warm-up was over!

But recently, they seemed to have improved to almost where they used to be. The ones in the new red cans seem to be pretty decent balls, at least on par with the way Penns used to be. Yes, they're the ones with the black lettering (Extra Duty). I played a long match last night with them and they were fine even after the match.

BTW, I also have noticed that Penn Championship balls have dropped a notch in durability recently.

Yes - exactly. That the same 'model' of ball (ie - Wilson Championship, or Penn Championship, etc.) can go up and down and up and down in quality is a sure indication of the companies manipulating the consumers. Hell, there should be no issues of quality at all - all the companies know how to produce a quality tennis ball - that's all they did through the 70s and 80s. Do they suddenly 'forget' how to make a good ball every couple of years, and then suddenly 'remember', only to suddenly 'forget' again? I think not.

Craig wrote:
"Yep Deuce--do you remember when Wilson Championship had green lettering on the ball? It used to be the green lettered balls were Extra Duty, the black lettered balls Regular Duty. Now they're all black--and that's when they started going downhill, IMO. The green-lettered balls from years ago seemed to be much better than today's."

Yeah - I remember the green lettering. Ball numbers also went up to #8 back then. Now, they only go to #4. Must have something to do with there being less tennis players now than there was 25, 30 years ago - no need to have 8 different numbers now, as there are less people on the courts, and so less chance that your balls get mixed up with others'.

[spam]

Top end Dunlops,Slaz Ultra-Vis and the Nassau by Tennis Tech are my faves-Penn are horrid!

[dennis1188]

Has anyone else noticed that the 'better playing' Slazenger and Wilson US Open balls are all made from a wool carpet felt? The cheaper balls are made from synthetic fibre.
I have seen the felt for tennis balls been made at the large carpet production factories near Atlanta, Georgia.

[TennsDog]

I tend to prefer Dunlop balls. But more than liking balls, I more have an aversion to Wilson US Open balls. They have a horrible tendency to somehow get a little something that gets loose inside the ball and it rattles around in it. I find that unacceptable for any tennis ball, let alone from a major brand...

[prince]

Dunlop Grand prix

[Richie Rich]

bigserving

I just tried the new Prince balls and I was quite impressed. They were hard and didn't fluff up but didn't go bald either after a 2 hour match. Pretty even consistency. Played a little quicker then Dunlop Grand Prixs. Better quality than Wilsons or Penn, IMO.

[equinox]

Tennis Australia has recently dumped Slazenger for tennis balls and signed up with Wilson sports for the Australian Open and summer futures circuit in Australia.

Nice payoff Wilson.

Btw Wilson balls are poor quality. Just today they were bald after one set.

[AndrewD]

Equinox, which Wilson ball were you using? Let me guess, 'the Brazilian' LOL

[Deuce]

How about Penn Masters Series Extra Duty?

Seem rather durable to me.

I just 'tested' 4 different Penn balls against each other - playing with one of each for about 90 minutes. At the conclusion, the felt on the Masters Series ball was noticeably the least worn of the 4.

Next best was Pro Penn, then ATP, then Championship. the Championship also seemed to be the smallest, and the ATP the largest (before any were hit with). All were Extra Duty Felt.

The ink print on the Championship was the best, however, wearing down the least...