That tapered beam (95 sq inch?) racquet was what the green PS85 was painted to look like, except it also had a "Pete Sampras" autograph on it.
probably to sell this after he won the open
Well said, we definitely could use some Stranger thinks kind of racquets. I like that series too, I had a ball watching it with my kids.
That would be my guess. I remember those rackets sold with a picture of Pete hanging in the middle. Just a guess though. I have never seen him with that PJ. Very interesting.
I am surprised that Wilson even ever made this green paintjob PS85 available for sale at one point because it was such an obscure racquet.
Gripsy is correct.
Yes, Gripsy. Originally Babolat distributed it.
I was at that match. Sampras beat Muster in a long five set match. This seems odd in retrospect, but I remember watching Sampras, Wilander and Muster all warming up on the same practice court earlier in the day. I forget who was hitting with Wilander, but Muster and Sampras were next to each other, and Muster was going all out and smoking the ball like a madman. Maybe he was trying to intimidate Sampras. Santoro smoked Wilander on Court Central in the second round, and then smoked Champion in the third round.
Muster was always like that
True. I watched him practice against Gaudenzi at RG in 1997 and I thought he would die on the court. Crazy lol.
Nice recollection. 1991, I guess it makes us "old men" by now... Did you see the Wilander-Santoro match by any chance?
He was hittng a bit like a madman, like maybe people should keep their distance. Sampras was always the complete opposite in practice, like some surfer dude who just got out of bed.
Yeah, I was in my early twenties back then. I was at the Santoro match. I had watched Wilander's first round match on an outside court, and he dismantled the guy just by keeping the ball in play. Santoro was taking the ball early and Wilander had no answers. Mats looked befuddled.
I was curious about this since even though I watched Sampras practice and play a match with this racquet, I had always thought he never strayed from his usual Pro Staff 85 during his tour days. I did a search, and as is often the case with anything related to tennis, the TW forum came up:So I might just be ignorant to his entire racquet history, add that I am in my earlier 30s and got into tennis only in the last 6 years or so....but I have never seen this racquet in use by Sampras before in pictures or videos.
Discuss.
^^^ This forum member always seems to have good information.The racquet was a paint Job. It was Pete's original Pro Staff 85 with the paint job of the Pro Staff 6.0 Pete Sampras with the dual tapered beam. The actual real Pro Staff 6.0 95 dual tapered beam that was sold to the public had glossy finish. Pete used the Pro Staff 85 with the green, silver and black cosmetics for a short time and then went back to his St. Vincents and did not have a Wilson contract for a while.
Interestingly the Pro Staff 85 with the paint job of the Pro Staff 6.0 95 dual tapered beam was sold in Japan. Just like you can get now in Japan the Original Pro Staff 6.0 85 with the paint job of the Pro Staff Classic.
I also knew a guy from Japan that I met once that used the Pro Staff 85 with the green, black, and silver paint job from the Pro Staff 6.0 95 dual tapered beam.
Here are some photos of the Pro Staff 85 with the paint job of the widebody Pro Staff 6.0 95 dual tapered beam.
This is what Pete used at Roland Garros in 1991.
Thanks.
Mmm that's probably true but I would have sworn that Pete used a different frame than his usual PS at the French in 1991. I'll try to check with old vids.
I remember the first round opponent as being mechanical and having no chance from the baseline. It was really windy (I was next to the court and got clay grit in my face and eyes) and the guy looked disinterested. In the second round, Wilander wasn't giving any pace and my memory is of Santoro taking balls early instead of being pushed back by the topspin, drawing a shorter ball, moving in closer and then finishing at the net. Santoro absolutely dictated everything, keeping Wilander off-balance and out of position. I was unfamiliar with Santoro at the time, but he really made Mats look bad that day.Thanks.
I can't remember who Mats played in the first round but he won in straight sets. What really happened during the next round against young Santoro has haunted my nights for long (I was a young dude then) and I still have no answers. Sure it was not prime Mats but he could / should have beaten Santoro that day no matter. I was curious to have an opinion from someone who actually saw the match from the court. I've watched parts of that match many times and never understood what happened. Mats went off the tour for two years short after this for a knee injury but, more than that, it was if he didn't care at all. I wish I could ask him one day, and talk about his career on and off the court.
EDIT: he beat a guy named Lavalle in the first round
What @vsbabolat said about it being a PS 85 paint job makes sense, and Pete probably just didn't feel comfortable with it.
It'll be interesting to hear how it compares to the PS 85.
Pete used the paint job of the Pro Staff 6.0 dual taper beam at the 1991 French Open and grass court season and that was it.
