hoosierbr
Hall of Fame
In case anyone is interested in one or perhaps all three of these racquets here's a quick review.
A bit about me: 26, 150 lbs, 5'9. Have played tennis for nearly 20 years and played a little Div I college t at a Big Ten school (I'd think you can figure out which one). Put down the racquet for a while after college and started up again about three years ago. Play USTA tourneys in the Open division. I don't put much stock in the NTRP ratings to be honest because a lot of folks either over or under rate. I could be a couple of places depending on the kind of day I'm having but as I'm not as fanatical as I once was about playing and training a certain number of hours each week I'd put myself at a solid 5. Higher on a good day and about that on a bad one. What can I say?
I play a very old-school game. I suppose I'm a pure serve-and-volleyer as I come in on both serves and get to the net to finish most points on the return. Over time I've stayed back a bit more on second serves depending on who I'm playing and what the surface is, i.e. how slow the hard courts are in sunny Southern Cal where I live. Use an eastern grip on both sides and hit with a one-handed bh. Used to hit with two hands but I changed. (Why is a long story.)
(BTW, I'm living proof that you don't have to be 6'4 and serve huge to serve-and-volley successfully. If you can get a high % of first serves in and hit your spots then come on down. The quicker the better!)
Played Dunlop and Slazenger racquets through college and since then have been in a bit of a whirlwind since Dunlop was sold and my peeps left. Some have since formed Vantage with whom I have a sponsorship deal now.
Currently I play the C10 Pro Tour and have diligently looked for something control-oriented, ideally a mid, that's a bit lighter. Have demoed just about everything through TW and took these sticks for a spin b/c I gathered through reviews and such that they were good serve-and-volley sticks.
The testing: Played a few days this week. Some drills but mostly practice sets with some good players I know, a hs coach and one of his young freshmen whom I've hit with a lot over the last few months. Very talented kid and great potential. I don't put much stock in how a racquet plays in drills b/c anything can play well in a controlled environment. How it reacts to you in a match setting is the great equalizer I think.
First up was the DNX 10 Mid. I was a little apprehensive about this one b/c I didn't enjoy the DNX feel of the MP and was worried about the swingweight. After a few minutes I was in love again. I mishit a few shots but I didn't find the feedback harsh or stiff by any means. It plays firmer than older Volkls but not uncomfortably so. In a word: brilliant. The swingweight is "officially" listed as 325 but it felt closer to 320. I'd put it at 322. If this makes any sense it played like the C10 Pro albeit a little lighter and in a 93 headsize.
Serves/Returns: Fantastic. Even when I didn't execute a good toss I still got the ball in nice and deep. Placement was great. After a while the weight does get to you and I had to concentrate more on what I did with the racquet and shoulder on the serve.
Returns were solid. Enough mass to block a big serve back and maueverable enough to take a nice cut.
Groundstrokes: Great again. This racquet was made to hit nice flat groundies. My fhs just cleared the net so I could sneak in while my opponent was digging low to get the ball up. It's a great feeling! My bh has more spin but I could easily flatten it out down the line. Just get those feet set and hips turning!
Volleys: This was the big surprise for me. The racquet has great feel to be sure but I found it just a tad cumbersome at the net, which was odd since it's very headlight. Perhaps the heft comes into play here. I couldn't figure it out and thought, perhaps, it was a one session thing but I encountered the same problem again the next day. As a result punching a volley deep was ok but getting the angle on shorter volleys was a challenge.
Next was the Prince Triple Threat Warrior MP. I know Pat Rafter never used this racquet but if he did I think he'd have grown to love it. It's odd b/c this was my favorite of the bunch, mostly, and it's specs are nowhere near what I prefer. Still, it did everything well.
Serves/Returns: Very good. Accuracy and placement were spot-on but lacking a bit in power. I prefer to serve hard and flat but this stick really isn't designed for that. Sliced serves were great if a tad difficult to get the hang of and kick serves were excellent. If I string this with my normal set up, VS Team in the low 50's, I think I could get the extra pop I look for.
Returns were solid. Nothing special here - you can do whatever you want.
Groundstrokes: Sweet. Flat, spin, slice. The Warrior does it all. Loved it off the bh side. FH was a touch wild so concentration was key.
Volleys: The Warrior is made to volley. Again I prefer very headlight, thin-beamed frames as I think they make the best volleying weapons but there's something about the way this stick was built that makes volleying effortless. Touch and drop volleys died quick and low.
Finally was the Prince O3 White. I had high expectations for this racquet in the sense that I really wanted to like it. Supposedly it's an update to the Warrior and boasts the Triple Threat technology but it plays completely different. I hear many men and some teaching pros are now using this stick which is good b/c it's way too good a racquet to be written off as a "chick-stick," as some do, because Sharapova uses it. After I played it though I understand why she uses a denser pattern b/c this thing is a rocket launcher!
Serves/Returns: I couldn't get the handle on serving with this. Flat serves still kicked up a little and kick serves went nuts. After a while I tossed the ball up and prayed that it would land inside the box, anywhere inside the box. As I was playing today I would step up to serve, cross myself (good Catholic that I am!) and then toss the ball. I started to get a better handle of it toward the end of today but I shudder to think what would happen if I put my normal stringjob in there! I could really hurt somebody.
Returns were nice. Has enough mass, surprisngly, to block the ball back but it's a great stick to be aggresive with on the return game. An Agassi-special!
Groundstrokes: It took a couple of days but I finally got the hang of the White off the ground. It is VERY powerful and spin maestros will be in heaven. If you hit a big, looping, kangaroo-jumping forehand with a western grip then look no further. Step up and put your money down on the table. However, I'm happy to say that you can hit the ball flat without fear of it flying into Arizona. For me though and I know this applies to almost no one else I found the best way to master the flat ball with the White was to swing faster and not slower as most would tend to do. Why this worked I can't tell you for sure. I just felt I got more control and better placement. Perhaps b/c it's not very headlight. Go figure. I would describe the experience as hitting a Babolat Pure Drive with a flexier feel and much more touch.
Volleys: The White hits surprisingly good volleys. I read the TW review of this stick and am now convinced more than ever that their testers are on crack b/c every one of them said the White volleyed better and overall played better when strung with the hard grommets. I've never understood people who say they get better feel from a stiff racquet. I know they're out there and I know many of them are good players but how you can get a better feel for what the ball is doing coming off the strings when you're getting a lot of vibration and feedback (negative too if you mishit the ball) is beyond me. I know, some will say feedback and vibration provides good ball feel and if you really feel that way then vaya con dios. I don't get it. A flexy frame with gut will give you all the feeback you would ever want and good feel at that.
Would I ever switch to any of these frames? Definitely the DNX 10 Mid and most likely the TT Warrior. The only modifications I'd make would be to put a leather grip on each frame b/c I get a better feel for the bevels that way and I can never get a good feel for bevels on the Prince handle. Leather does provide more vibration sure but not in an uncomfortable way. At least for me. If I can feel the grip better then I don't have to worry about mishitting which takes away the negative vibration.
Ok, that's all for me. Hope this was helpful to someone looking at one of these racquets or interesting to anyone else who took the time to read this.
Randy
A bit about me: 26, 150 lbs, 5'9. Have played tennis for nearly 20 years and played a little Div I college t at a Big Ten school (I'd think you can figure out which one). Put down the racquet for a while after college and started up again about three years ago. Play USTA tourneys in the Open division. I don't put much stock in the NTRP ratings to be honest because a lot of folks either over or under rate. I could be a couple of places depending on the kind of day I'm having but as I'm not as fanatical as I once was about playing and training a certain number of hours each week I'd put myself at a solid 5. Higher on a good day and about that on a bad one. What can I say?
I play a very old-school game. I suppose I'm a pure serve-and-volleyer as I come in on both serves and get to the net to finish most points on the return. Over time I've stayed back a bit more on second serves depending on who I'm playing and what the surface is, i.e. how slow the hard courts are in sunny Southern Cal where I live. Use an eastern grip on both sides and hit with a one-handed bh. Used to hit with two hands but I changed. (Why is a long story.)
(BTW, I'm living proof that you don't have to be 6'4 and serve huge to serve-and-volley successfully. If you can get a high % of first serves in and hit your spots then come on down. The quicker the better!)
Played Dunlop and Slazenger racquets through college and since then have been in a bit of a whirlwind since Dunlop was sold and my peeps left. Some have since formed Vantage with whom I have a sponsorship deal now.
Currently I play the C10 Pro Tour and have diligently looked for something control-oriented, ideally a mid, that's a bit lighter. Have demoed just about everything through TW and took these sticks for a spin b/c I gathered through reviews and such that they were good serve-and-volley sticks.
The testing: Played a few days this week. Some drills but mostly practice sets with some good players I know, a hs coach and one of his young freshmen whom I've hit with a lot over the last few months. Very talented kid and great potential. I don't put much stock in how a racquet plays in drills b/c anything can play well in a controlled environment. How it reacts to you in a match setting is the great equalizer I think.
First up was the DNX 10 Mid. I was a little apprehensive about this one b/c I didn't enjoy the DNX feel of the MP and was worried about the swingweight. After a few minutes I was in love again. I mishit a few shots but I didn't find the feedback harsh or stiff by any means. It plays firmer than older Volkls but not uncomfortably so. In a word: brilliant. The swingweight is "officially" listed as 325 but it felt closer to 320. I'd put it at 322. If this makes any sense it played like the C10 Pro albeit a little lighter and in a 93 headsize.
Serves/Returns: Fantastic. Even when I didn't execute a good toss I still got the ball in nice and deep. Placement was great. After a while the weight does get to you and I had to concentrate more on what I did with the racquet and shoulder on the serve.
Returns were solid. Enough mass to block a big serve back and maueverable enough to take a nice cut.
Groundstrokes: Great again. This racquet was made to hit nice flat groundies. My fhs just cleared the net so I could sneak in while my opponent was digging low to get the ball up. It's a great feeling! My bh has more spin but I could easily flatten it out down the line. Just get those feet set and hips turning!
Volleys: This was the big surprise for me. The racquet has great feel to be sure but I found it just a tad cumbersome at the net, which was odd since it's very headlight. Perhaps the heft comes into play here. I couldn't figure it out and thought, perhaps, it was a one session thing but I encountered the same problem again the next day. As a result punching a volley deep was ok but getting the angle on shorter volleys was a challenge.
Next was the Prince Triple Threat Warrior MP. I know Pat Rafter never used this racquet but if he did I think he'd have grown to love it. It's odd b/c this was my favorite of the bunch, mostly, and it's specs are nowhere near what I prefer. Still, it did everything well.
Serves/Returns: Very good. Accuracy and placement were spot-on but lacking a bit in power. I prefer to serve hard and flat but this stick really isn't designed for that. Sliced serves were great if a tad difficult to get the hang of and kick serves were excellent. If I string this with my normal set up, VS Team in the low 50's, I think I could get the extra pop I look for.
Returns were solid. Nothing special here - you can do whatever you want.
Groundstrokes: Sweet. Flat, spin, slice. The Warrior does it all. Loved it off the bh side. FH was a touch wild so concentration was key.
Volleys: The Warrior is made to volley. Again I prefer very headlight, thin-beamed frames as I think they make the best volleying weapons but there's something about the way this stick was built that makes volleying effortless. Touch and drop volleys died quick and low.
Finally was the Prince O3 White. I had high expectations for this racquet in the sense that I really wanted to like it. Supposedly it's an update to the Warrior and boasts the Triple Threat technology but it plays completely different. I hear many men and some teaching pros are now using this stick which is good b/c it's way too good a racquet to be written off as a "chick-stick," as some do, because Sharapova uses it. After I played it though I understand why she uses a denser pattern b/c this thing is a rocket launcher!
Serves/Returns: I couldn't get the handle on serving with this. Flat serves still kicked up a little and kick serves went nuts. After a while I tossed the ball up and prayed that it would land inside the box, anywhere inside the box. As I was playing today I would step up to serve, cross myself (good Catholic that I am!) and then toss the ball. I started to get a better handle of it toward the end of today but I shudder to think what would happen if I put my normal stringjob in there! I could really hurt somebody.
Returns were nice. Has enough mass, surprisngly, to block the ball back but it's a great stick to be aggresive with on the return game. An Agassi-special!
Groundstrokes: It took a couple of days but I finally got the hang of the White off the ground. It is VERY powerful and spin maestros will be in heaven. If you hit a big, looping, kangaroo-jumping forehand with a western grip then look no further. Step up and put your money down on the table. However, I'm happy to say that you can hit the ball flat without fear of it flying into Arizona. For me though and I know this applies to almost no one else I found the best way to master the flat ball with the White was to swing faster and not slower as most would tend to do. Why this worked I can't tell you for sure. I just felt I got more control and better placement. Perhaps b/c it's not very headlight. Go figure. I would describe the experience as hitting a Babolat Pure Drive with a flexier feel and much more touch.
Volleys: The White hits surprisingly good volleys. I read the TW review of this stick and am now convinced more than ever that their testers are on crack b/c every one of them said the White volleyed better and overall played better when strung with the hard grommets. I've never understood people who say they get better feel from a stiff racquet. I know they're out there and I know many of them are good players but how you can get a better feel for what the ball is doing coming off the strings when you're getting a lot of vibration and feedback (negative too if you mishit the ball) is beyond me. I know, some will say feedback and vibration provides good ball feel and if you really feel that way then vaya con dios. I don't get it. A flexy frame with gut will give you all the feeback you would ever want and good feel at that.
Would I ever switch to any of these frames? Definitely the DNX 10 Mid and most likely the TT Warrior. The only modifications I'd make would be to put a leather grip on each frame b/c I get a better feel for the bevels that way and I can never get a good feel for bevels on the Prince handle. Leather does provide more vibration sure but not in an uncomfortable way. At least for me. If I can feel the grip better then I don't have to worry about mishitting which takes away the negative vibration.
Ok, that's all for me. Hope this was helpful to someone looking at one of these racquets or interesting to anyone else who took the time to read this.
Randy
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