When I was younger and played tennis constantly, I always used low string tensions because I wanted to be like my idol, Johnny Mac. I suppose I just got used to the lower tensions because I never really noticed anything "wrong" with my racquet setup and played for years at a pretty high level.
But now that I'm getting back into the game after a long (14 year) layoff, I started using multis at higher tensions in some new racquets. I'm trying to stay within the recommended tension range on the racquet, if not towards the high end, the thought being that I can maintain a bit more control while I "re-learn" my strokes. I've been playing like this for the past 3 months and haven't really had any major issues. My current setup is the TF335 (16x20) strung with Klip Venom (or X-1 Biphase sometimes) at 62M/60C, offering some decent power with good control and a lot of comfort.
However, I just strung up my racquet last night with some plain old synthetic gut (Ashaway Liberty) at 48 lb. in the mains and 46 lb. in the crosses just to see what would happen. I fully expected to actually HATE the racquet during this experiment and expected to overhit balls left and right, sailing them over the back fence. But the exact opposite happened. To be honest, the racquet played like a dream. I had absolutely no issues with control, power, or spin. In fact, I might go so far as to say I was getting BETTER action on the ball and hitting more consistent strokes overall. I wasn't at all conscious of the strings while I was hitting, so I'm pretty sure my perception wasn't due to some hidden bias or expectations for the new strings.
I guess I'm thinking that the lower tension might be taking advantage of my old muscle memory and allowing me to hit shots like I used to years ago.
Has anyone else changed tension this dramatically (from the 60's to the 40's) with their racquet and found that it actually plays BETTER without making ANY stroke adjustments? Because that's pretty much what happened to me. As I said, I'm 100% certain it's not some sort of honeymoon effect because I really made it a point to just go out and hit without thinking about the racquet at all. But at the end of the practice session, I sat back and reviewed the various points and realized that I was most definitely playing better and with more control.
But now that I'm getting back into the game after a long (14 year) layoff, I started using multis at higher tensions in some new racquets. I'm trying to stay within the recommended tension range on the racquet, if not towards the high end, the thought being that I can maintain a bit more control while I "re-learn" my strokes. I've been playing like this for the past 3 months and haven't really had any major issues. My current setup is the TF335 (16x20) strung with Klip Venom (or X-1 Biphase sometimes) at 62M/60C, offering some decent power with good control and a lot of comfort.
However, I just strung up my racquet last night with some plain old synthetic gut (Ashaway Liberty) at 48 lb. in the mains and 46 lb. in the crosses just to see what would happen. I fully expected to actually HATE the racquet during this experiment and expected to overhit balls left and right, sailing them over the back fence. But the exact opposite happened. To be honest, the racquet played like a dream. I had absolutely no issues with control, power, or spin. In fact, I might go so far as to say I was getting BETTER action on the ball and hitting more consistent strokes overall. I wasn't at all conscious of the strings while I was hitting, so I'm pretty sure my perception wasn't due to some hidden bias or expectations for the new strings.
I guess I'm thinking that the lower tension might be taking advantage of my old muscle memory and allowing me to hit shots like I used to years ago.
Has anyone else changed tension this dramatically (from the 60's to the 40's) with their racquet and found that it actually plays BETTER without making ANY stroke adjustments? Because that's pretty much what happened to me. As I said, I'm 100% certain it's not some sort of honeymoon effect because I really made it a point to just go out and hit without thinking about the racquet at all. But at the end of the practice session, I sat back and reviewed the various points and realized that I was most definitely playing better and with more control.