FoldingChair
Semi-Pro
I was thinking about buying one purely as a collection piece. But that might be a waste of money. I'm nowhere near good enough to play it.
Who is going to buy Fed Autograph 97, and why?
- Thread starter Fed for Pope
- Start date
Johnny-Cage
Rookie
Nah, probably the 11.7-ounce version.
hoodjem
G.O.A.T.
Ha ha, good one.But isn't that a small price to pay if this racquet enables you to play tennis just like Roger Federer?
It is his Autograph racquet after all.
rh310
Hall of Fame
Yep. Count me in.
Bhagi Katbamna
Legend
Prob buy one used off of a big auction site just to see what it is like.
hoodjem
G.O.A.T.
Good for you: Know thyself.
rh310
Hall of Fame
Exactly. If you lie to yourself, you're doomed.
I get to hit with one tonight. Have to restring it first. Right now it has that crappy Ripspin in it. I'm going to string it with VS Touch Black 16 mains and Solinco TB Soft 17 in the crosses at 57 and see how it plays. I'll write a report tomorrow.
I hit for about an hour with the RF Auto. Mostly hard rallies from the baseline, with some volleys. First off, I realized immediately that I strung it way too tight. Next time I'd drop it to at least 52#. With the strings at 57#, there was no bite or lift with this racket. Many, especially Drakulie, have commented on the plow through with this racket. I would add a caveat to that statement. If you hit fairly flat, it has tons of plow through. If you hit with a lot of spin, much less plow through than the 2014 stock 90. Also, you need a totally different forehand swing than you do with the 90. My normally playing partner commented that with the 90 my ball is so much heavier than with the 97. You have to accentuate the topspin so much more on the 97 to get the equivalent heaviness of the ball. Another thing, this racket seemed a lot more head light compared to the stock 90. A lot more than 1 or 2 points. It took a lot of balls to get my timing so that I wasn't way ahead of the ball, especially on the forehand side.
There are two places where this racket really shines.....
1. one hand backhands. This racket is so incredibly solid hitting onehanders. I can see why Fed likes the racket and why he is shanking a lot less. With a smooth topspin swing, you can generate so much more power with tons of control.
2. volleys. Unbelievable feel. You just touch the volley and it goes exactly where you want. Both forehand and backhand side.
Things I didn't like.
1. The sound of the racket compared to the 90. Compared to the 90, the 97 sounds like a cheap Prince racket with the same string. You just don't get that reassuring "pop" that you get from a 90. That may be due to the tighter string tension, but I figured I needed to raise the tension about 5# to get an equal play with the 97 compared to the 90 (which I play at 52#).
2. When having to hit defensive shots where you can't get your body into the shot, the power is extremely weak compared to the 2014 90. However, like has been mentioned before, the slice is deadly.
3. Much harder to hit a heavy forehand with this racket compared to the 90. I can see why Fed is sailing a lot more forehands long compared to the 90.
I'm going to hit with a ball machine tomorrow and try some serves. I'll update again later in the day tomorrow.
I hit for about an hour with the RF Auto. Mostly hard rallies from the baseline, with some volleys. First off, I realized immediately that I strung it way too tight. Next time I'd drop it to at least 52#. With the strings at 57#, there was no bite or lift with this racket. Many, especially Drakulie, have commented on the plow through with this racket. I would add a caveat to that statement. If you hit fairly flat, it has tons of plow through. If you hit with a lot of spin, much less plow through than the 2014 stock 90. Also, you need a totally different forehand swing than you do with the 90. My normally playing partner commented that with the 90 my ball is so much heavier than with the 97. You have to accentuate the topspin so much more on the 97 to get the equivalent heaviness of the ball. Another thing, this racket seemed a lot more head light compared to the stock 90. A lot more than 1 or 2 points. It took a lot of balls to get my timing so that I wasn't way ahead of the ball, especially on the forehand side.
There are two places where this racket really shines.....
1. one hand backhands. This racket is so incredibly solid hitting onehanders. I can see why Fed likes the racket and why he is shanking a lot less. With a smooth topspin swing, you can generate so much more power with tons of control.
2. volleys. Unbelievable feel. You just touch the volley and it goes exactly where you want. Both forehand and backhand side.
Things I didn't like.
1. The sound of the racket compared to the 90. Compared to the 90, the 97 sounds like a cheap Prince racket with the same string. You just don't get that reassuring "pop" that you get from a 90. That may be due to the tighter string tension, but I figured I needed to raise the tension about 5# to get an equal play with the 97 compared to the 90 (which I play at 52#).
2. When having to hit defensive shots where you can't get your body into the shot, the power is extremely weak compared to the 2014 90. However, like has been mentioned before, the slice is deadly.
3. Much harder to hit a heavy forehand with this racket compared to the 90. I can see why Fed is sailing a lot more forehands long compared to the 90.
I'm going to hit with a ball machine tomorrow and try some serves. I'll update again later in the day tomorrow.
Last edited:
West Coast Ace
G.O.A.T.
Nice. Glad to hear more and more are getting out in the wild. Please post your impressions.
Nostradamus
Bionic Poster
I would buy if they had 27.4 inch version
Nostradamus
Bionic Poster
Ahhh yes, I am aware. but every time I did to 27 inch racket, it COMPLETELY changes ths specs. So much so that I pretty can't use it and becomes completely different racket.
Nostradamus
Bionic Poster
Question is Would Pete Sampras have Loved this racket ????????????
I hit for about an hour with the RF Auto. Mostly hard rallies from the baseline, with some volleys. First off, I realized immediately that I strung it way too tight. Next time I'd drop it to at least 52#. With the strings at 57#, there was no bite or lift with this racket. Many, especially Drakulie, have commented on the plow through with this racket. I would add a caveat to that statement. If you hit fairly flat, it has tons of plow through. If you hit with a lot of spin, much less plow through than the 2014 stock 90. Also, you need a totally different forehand swing than you do with the 90. My normal playing partner commented that with the 90 my ball is so much heavier than with the 97. You have to accentuate the topspin so much more on the 97 to get the equivalent heaviness of the ball. Another thing, this racket seemed a lot more head light compared to the stock 90. A lot more than 1 or 2 points. It took a lot of balls to get my timing so that I wasn't way ahead of the ball, especially on the forehand side.
There are two places where this racket really shines.....
1. one hand backhands. This racket is so incredibly solid hitting onehanders. I can see why Fed likes the racket and why he is shanking a lot less. With a smooth topspin swing, you can generate so much more power with tons of control.
2. volleys. Unbelievable feel. You just touch the volley and it goes exactly where you want. Both forehand and backhand side.
Things I didn't like.
1. The sound of the racket compared to the 90. Compared to the 90, the 97 sounds like a cheap Prince racket with the same string. You just don't get that reassuring "pop" that you get from a 90. That may be due to the tighter string tension, but I figured I needed to raise the tension about 5# to get an equal play with the 97 compared to the 90 (which I play at 52#).
2. When having to hit defensive shots where you can't get your body into the shot, the power is extremely weak compared to the 2014 90. However, like has been mentioned before, the slice is deadly.
3. Much harder to hit a heavy forehand with this racket compared to the 90. I can see why Fed is sailing a lot more forehands long compared to the 90.
I'm going to hit with a ball machine tomorrow and try some serves. I'll update again later in the day tomorrow.
There are two places where this racket really shines.....
1. one hand backhands. This racket is so incredibly solid hitting onehanders. I can see why Fed likes the racket and why he is shanking a lot less. With a smooth topspin swing, you can generate so much more power with tons of control.
2. volleys. Unbelievable feel. You just touch the volley and it goes exactly where you want. Both forehand and backhand side.
Things I didn't like.
1. The sound of the racket compared to the 90. Compared to the 90, the 97 sounds like a cheap Prince racket with the same string. You just don't get that reassuring "pop" that you get from a 90. That may be due to the tighter string tension, but I figured I needed to raise the tension about 5# to get an equal play with the 97 compared to the 90 (which I play at 52#).
2. When having to hit defensive shots where you can't get your body into the shot, the power is extremely weak compared to the 2014 90. However, like has been mentioned before, the slice is deadly.
3. Much harder to hit a heavy forehand with this racket compared to the 90. I can see why Fed is sailing a lot more forehands long compared to the 90.
I'm going to hit with a ball machine tomorrow and try some serves. I'll update again later in the day tomorrow.
BreakPoint
Bionic Poster
Yup, I've been hearing that sound difference all year watching Federer play with the new 97.
Thanks for the review! Very helpful.
Keep 'em coming!
Yup, I've been hearing that sound difference all year watching Federer play with the new 97.
Thanks for the review! Very helpful.
Keep 'em coming!
BP, as I also stated, you hit a much heavier ball with the 90. I guess I'm going to have to go out and buy about 6 90 frames to last me for the next 3 years.
henryshli
Semi-Pro
Congrats!!!Oh lawd what have I done?
West Coast Ace
G.O.A.T.
BreakPoint
Bionic Poster
Well, the good news is that the 90's will be on clearance when the RF97 hits the stores.
hoodjem
G.O.A.T.
Well, the good news is that the 90's will be on clearance when the RF97 hits the stores.
True. I just got back from dropping off the racket to the local Wilson rep and main tennis shop and told them my thoughts on the racket. It seems they are hearing the same thing.
WhereIsMacMac
Professional
Fed for Pope
Rookie
Usually live off my 85s, so I think I can handle the weight. However about to start life as a broke student, so sadly won't be able to justify the $600 on a new pair. How sad...
michaelscoots
Rookie
Did you ever hit with the K90? I'm wondering how the 2014 90 compares. I've heard it's similar but have held off on trying it due to the lower swing weight.
thanks,
Michael
Harry_Wild
G.O.A.T.
I been hitting with the RF97 for a couple of days now - a week and the bright red is becoming attractive to me! LOL! So, I may get this racquet as my racquet! LOL!
West Coast Ace
G.O.A.T.
Yes. And not just TW. That is the new release date. Wilson finally figured out waiting until Oct 1 wasn't very smart.
And 'first batch' is taking a page out of Apple's iPhone Playbook. Claim the 'first batch' sold out in some incredibly short time to garner free press. Magically the next batch shows up quickly and sales continue.
