Modern Day Wood Racquet Tournament

Would be a fun watch. Some of the tennis would be bad (for pro standards), and it would be funny to watch Rafa serve and volley. Fed, Llodra, Stepanek and a few others would do reasonably well. They could bring back Pistol Pete, Rafter, Johnny Mac, and Edberg for good measure.

Racket sponsors wouldn't care, as long as they used that particular company's old wooden racket, and it had a their logo on the strings.

All the major companies had woodies.

I think it would be great. And no reason why some wooden rackets couldnt have a modern PJ applied. Id love to see Nadal swinging a JK with an APD pj.

I recall an interview with Sue Barker when she spoke about an exhibition that Tim Henman gave and he played against a celebrity who plays tennis using a cricket bat and still beat the celebrity.

These top players can play with anything, it may not be their normal style of play but they would be facing an opponent in a like for like situation. I think it would be a good charity exhibition.

Maybe they should stage an "All wood competition" in support of men with erectile disfunction.

Magnetite said:

Would be a fun watch. Some of the tennis would be bad (for pro standards), and it would be funny to watch Rafa serve and volley. Fed, Llodra, Stepanek and a few others would do reasonably well. They could bring back Pistol Pete, Rafter, Johnny Mac, and Edberg for good measure.

Racket sponsors wouldn't care, as long as they used that particular company's old wooden racket, and it had a their logo on the strings.

All the major companies had woodies.

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Did Babolat ever make wood racquets?

mmk said:

Did Babolat ever make wood racquets?

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Right. I forgot about Babolat, that could be a problem. I'm sure they could come up with something for one event though. Maybe the Babolat guys could paint their rackets black?

I hate the feel of Babolats, so I guess I forgot about them :/

Either way, it would be fun to watch.

Henman could commentate, he is pretty wooden.

I don't understand, how you guys think that Mac would be still competitive. Don't you think, he is a bit old for these young pros. Yes, he is used to wood but seriously, I don't think he would stand the chance. Get real.

McEnroe hasn´t played a competitive match with a wooden racquet in decades. the idea that he could switch so easily while others can´t is not really well thought through
the age factor would prevent him from winning anything in such a tournament against current pros

vil said:

I don't understand, how you guys think that Mac would be still competitive. Don't you think, he is a bit old for these young pros. Yes, he is used to wood but seriously, I don't think he would stand the chance. Get real.

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He still plays very competitively vs most pros in WTT. Certainly loses to them more times than not, but the fact that Mac is more familiar with the intricacies with wooden racquets gives him a distinct advantage over current pros.

from "You cannot be serious" :

4. A return to wooden rackets would be a huge improvement for professional tennis. The biggest change in the game in the last twenty-five years—the replacement of wood by graphite—has been a bad one. I happen to think that wooden rackets are beautiful aesthetically and purer for the game. Look at baseball: Kids start with aluminum bats in Little League, then move on to graphite or Kevlar or whatever in college, and then—and only then—if they make it to the majors, do they get to use these beautiful wooden bats that require greater expertise for success. Why not do the same thing in tennis? I think it looks great to have a little wand in your hand, instead of some ultra-thick club big enough to kill somebody with! Wood, to me, has glamour. You need strategy and technique. Tennis, these days, is sadly lacking in all those things: It’s all (as David Bowie said) Wham, bam, thank you, ma’am.

McEnroe, John; Kaplan, James (2002-06-10). You Cannot Be Serious . Penguin Group. Kindle Edition.

Coming to the net is always going to be risky for the obvious reason that if your opponent can pass you then the point is over.

The problem is nowadays the risk of being passed is far too high even if you hit a good approach shot. This is caused by slower balls, slower courts and racquet string technology. This doesn't only screw up net players, it also screws up attacking baseliners. The only players it benefits are really fit baseline players who can spin the ball back over and over and over again until there's a slight opening or the other player misses.

Love Anet said:

Coming to the net is always going to be risky for the obvious reason that if your opponent can pass you then the point is over.

The problem is nowadays the risk of being passed is far too high even if you hit a good approach shot. This is caused by slower balls, slower courts and racquet string technology. This doesn't only screw up net players, it also screws up attacking baseliners. The only players it benefits are really fit baseline players who can spin the ball back over and over and over again until there's a slight opening or the other player misses.

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and therein lies the problem of modern tennis. it´s become one-dimensional and makes us long for the good old days of wood and natural gut