Why Are Racquet Manufacturers Allowed To Lie Re: What Racquets Their Players Use?

floydcouncil

Professional
Yes, Djokovic won the AO with HIS Graphene Speed Pro, not with YOUR Graphene Speed Pro. See the difference?

It's like saying Jeff Gordon won the Daytona 500 driving HIS Chevy Impala, not driving YOUR Chevy Impala. :)

Gasquet won the XX tournament with HIS Graphene Extreme Pro, not with YOUR Graphene Speed Pro. But in reality, Gasquet's "Graphene Extreme" is actually an Instinct frame painted to look like an Extreme. See the difference?

It's like saying Jeff Gordon won the Daytona 500 driving HIS Chevy Impala, not driving YOUR Chevy Impala. But in reality, Gordon's Impala is a Ferrari painted to look like an Impala!!!!!!!! :)
 

BreakPoint

Bionic Poster
Gasquet won the XX tournament with HIS Graphene Extreme Pro, not with YOUR Graphene Speed Pro. But in reality, Gasquet's "Graphene Extreme" is actually an Instinct frame painted to look like an Extreme. See the difference?

It's like saying Jeff Gordon won the Daytona 500 driving HIS Chevy Impala, not driving YOUR Chevy Impala. But in reality, Gordon's Impala is a Ferrari painted to look like an Impala!!!!!!!! :)

Exactly!

Gasquet's Graphene Extreme Pro is not the same Graphene Extreme Pro that you can buy in the stores. Head never claimed that it was. :)
 

Overdrive

Legend
It's like saying Jeff Gordon won the Daytona 500 driving HIS Chevy Impala, not driving YOUR Chevy Impala. But in reality, Gordon's Impala is a Ferrari painted to look like an Impala!!!!!!!! :)

This analogy 65% works because every specific car part that is on a model is patented and they can't put it in the retail market.They would be dragged into a international lawsuit that would involve the government (as they own a significant amount of GM stock when they bailed them out which was a horrible mistake).

However, if Ferrari made replicas of Chevy Impalas, they would run 200% better and faster (not MPG though).
 

West Coast Ace

G.O.A.T.
It would be good to make them available to the public, most will probably realize that it an absolute pain in the *** to customize a hairpin to your preferred specs....
No. Then someone would turn up with wrist/elbow/shoulder problems - and a lawyer. Even if you had to sign a waiver at the time of purchase.
 

gplracer

Hall of Fame
It is funny to see people take up for the racket companies with all the outlandish excuses and comparisons to other things. The bottom line is pros are much more fit and skilled than the rest of us. They play with a racket that is heavier than what most of us need. The racket companies know this so they purposely deceive the public. They make a model for the pro and then they make a lighter one for the public. The problem is that some many of us know this. The vast majority of the public does not know this. They are "fooled". The biggest part of the public that are fooled are kids. The kids want the rackets that the pros play with.

For those of you who take up for the racket companies. Why do the racket companies not come out with a disclaimer in their ads that says, "notice: The racket on the retail shelf is not actually the racket that our pro players use" They do not do this because that want to trick the kids. Do you not see a problem with this? It is taking advantage of kids and others for profit. Maybe it should be law that all rackets should have that disclaimer on them. I bet then they would come out with a racket that has the same specs. They do not care how YOU play. They only care about how you spend your money.
 

WhereIsMacMac

Professional
I'd like to use Djokovic's, Nadal's or Federer's Racquet but I honestly cannot handle the weight, etc.

IMO yes, the racquet manufacturers are lying. But they're actually making customers (like me) feel good about themselves. Imagine a "real" player's racquet wielded by a casual tennis player. He'll get frustrated if he realizes that he can't play like his idol.

And from a marketing point of view, If racquet manufacturers would sell the actual racquets that Federer or Nadal or any other touring pros, they'd get bankrupt. I think (I just think) that more tennis players would prefer hitting with a normal racquet than one's they cannot actually wield.

As for players who prefer the specs of the pro's. You can always buy an actual player's racquet. I believe there are some out there, not much tho. And you can always customize a normal racquet to make it close to the "actual" player's specs

Just my opinion...
 

yemenmocha

Professional
with the beliefs of some, makes me wonder how tennis ever survived the wood racquet eras with the weight of those racquets then. It's as if the current generation of players are a bunch of limpwristed sissies who can't possibly handle a racquet that weighs about the same as a wood racquet from a few decades ago.
 
with the beliefs of some, makes me wonder how tennis ever survived the wood racquet eras with the weight of those racquets then. It's as if the current generation of players are a bunch of limpwristed sissies who can't possibly handle a racquet that weighs about the same as a wood racquet from a few decades ago.

well, the swing paths are fundamentally different.. there would be no Rafa if we still used wooden racquets.

Interesting comments from Todd Woodbridge commenting on Tomic yesterday. Made some somewhat too honest remarks about Bernard's struggles with his racquet change, then the camera switched to a couple of Yonex Reps in the crowd whom Woodbridge described as his 'new best friends, not'

btw, Tomic appears to be back using the Yonex, that head shape is pretty hard to miss..
 

vandre

Hall of Fame
Which is why we should go back to using wood racquets. :wink:

so is that the plan, bp? get the racquet companies sued into oblivion so that we're all faced with either playing with woodies or not playing at all? :confused:

It is funny to see people take up for the racket companies with all the outlandish excuses and comparisons to other things. The bottom line is pros are much more fit and skilled than the rest of us. They play with a racket that is heavier than what most of us need. The racket companies know this so they purposely deceive the public. They make a model for the pro and then they make a lighter one for the public. The problem is that some many of us know this. The vast majority of the public does not know this. They are "fooled". The biggest part of the public that are fooled are kids. The kids want the rackets that the pros play with.

For those of you who take up for the racket companies. Why do the racket companies not come out with a disclaimer in their ads that says, "notice: The racket on the retail shelf is not actually the racket that our pro players use" They do not do this because that want to trick the kids. Do you not see a problem with this? It is taking advantage of kids and others for profit. Maybe it should be law that all rackets should have that disclaimer on them. I bet then they would come out with a racket that has the same specs. They do not care how YOU play. They only care about how you spend your money.

kids? how many kids are suing Wilson? the woman who instigated the class action lawsuit against Wilson is an adult. anyway, do you know any kids who are financing their own tennis gear? if so, I want names so they can teach my 2 year old their secrets! most of the kids I know using babolats or wilsons are doing so because mommy and daddy paid for them (and if that is the case in point, who has been victimized?). furthermore, look at any high school tennis team and you'll find one brand or another that seems to be dominant (the one i'm familiar with is babolat) to the point that all of the students on that team buy babs (or whatever) because they don't want to be the one to stick out. in my experience, I've seen many more cases of this type of influence than "I want to be like my favorite pro". dealing with why people buy racquets can be a murky issue and it is highly suspect to judge the impact of pros merely by the number of people who've piled on in this class action lawsuit because people can smell "free money" like sharks can smell blood in the ocean.

I think it's hilarious to read posts from people who think that people in general are actually so gullible as to need a disclaimer since we as a society are either so dense that we will believe any glossy picture or web banner placed in front of us (despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary in some cases) or we are too lazy to research products before purchasing them. I understand that children and teenagers are highly impressionable and that much of the marketing is directed at them for everything from frozen food to toys to music to everything under the sun (because any marketing guru will tell you that children wield a heavy hammer when it comes to purchasing power even though they don't have jobs). so tell me, how specifically are the racquet companies marketing to kids? did Wilson photoshop Roger Federer into bikini bottom to hit tennis balls with spongebob? judging by how my 2 year old shredded the last tennis mag he got ahold of, he was not impressed by anything in it (he's a wozzy fan and he even tore up her pic).

if you're going to lobby for disclaimers, you'd better get busy. you're going to want them at guitar center too. if I had a grand for every Gibson sold near Christmas as a present for a teenager who wants to learn how to play guitar and has to have a les paul just because _________________ plays them i'd be as rich as, well, Gibson. btw, there's no way slash plays off the rack les pauls from guitar center (rumor is they're ghost build by someone who doesn't even work for Gibson so you're gonna need a big disclaimer). go ahead and compare the mark-up between a $200 tennis racquet and a $2000 guitar and tell me who the bigger offender is...

speaking of offenders, if you're going to sue racquet companies you set a false advertising precedent that leads you to sue your parents for sticking money under your pillow in the name of the tooth fairy (sorry for the spoiler, kids). there was no actual tooth fairy as your parents advertised. they deliberately and maliciously deceived you for the sole purpose of allowing you to re-live a fond part of their childhood. those filthy liars! don't forget to stroke them for the cost of therapy and psychological distress...

as a parent, if my son came to me wanting a $200 tennis racquet because _________ plays with it, I know that would be a great time to teach him about how things aren't always as they're advertised (if you've ordered sea-monkeys or x-ray specs from a comic book, you know this already). In fact, i'd probably demo it for him from somewhere and we'd take it out for a nice long hit and I think by the time it was over he would see that it didn't work for him. anyway, if that didn't work, i'd just tell him the tennis player he's supposed to look up to most is me so getting one of my hand-me-down (make that "match-worn") sticks should be the biggest thrill of his young life because that is one of the ACTUAL racquets I used (yup, i'm really looking forward to those teenage years....:rolleyes: ). if he learns this lesson it will be inherently more valuable than a world's worth of disclaimers!
 
sigh, BP was kidding, sort of an in-joke.

Sure, he carries on about wooden racquets and prostaff 85s but he uses, umm, I don't remember, actually, but it isn't wooden!
 

West Coast Ace

G.O.A.T.
You would have No case, you purchased it of your own free will knowing what it was in advance. (possibly even after testing).
You entirely missed my point. It was about the litigious societies in the West these days.

In other threads on this subject I back the companies because of the ability to demo.
 

gplracer

Hall of Fame
so is that the plan, bp? get the racquet companies sued into oblivion so that we're all faced with either playing with woodies or not playing at all? :confused:



kids? how many kids are suing Wilson? the woman who instigated the class action lawsuit against Wilson is an adult. anyway, do you know any kids who are financing their own tennis gear? if so, I want names so they can teach my 2 year old their secrets! most of the kids I know using babolats or wilsons are doing so because mommy and daddy paid for them (and if that is the case in point, who has been victimized?). furthermore, look at any high school tennis team and you'll find one brand or another that seems to be dominant (the one i'm familiar with is babolat) to the point that all of the students on that team buy babs (or whatever) because they don't want to be the one to stick out. in my experience, I've seen many more cases of this type of influence than "I want to be like my favorite pro". dealing with why people buy racquets can be a murky issue and it is highly suspect to judge the impact of pros merely by the number of people who've piled on in this class action lawsuit because people can smell "free money" like sharks can smell blood in the ocean.

I think it's hilarious to read posts from people who think that people in general are actually so gullible as to need a disclaimer since we as a society are either so dense that we will believe any glossy picture or web banner placed in front of us (despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary in some cases) or we are too lazy to research products before purchasing them. I understand that children and teenagers are highly impressionable and that much of the marketing is directed at them for everything from frozen food to toys to music to everything under the sun (because any marketing guru will tell you that children wield a heavy hammer when it comes to purchasing power even though they don't have jobs). so tell me, how specifically are the racquet companies marketing to kids? did Wilson photoshop Roger Federer into bikini bottom to hit tennis balls with spongebob? judging by how my 2 year old shredded the last tennis mag he got ahold of, he was not impressed by anything in it (he's a wozzy fan and he even tore up her pic).

if you're going to lobby for disclaimers, you'd better get busy. you're going to want them at guitar center too. if I had a grand for every Gibson sold near Christmas as a present for a teenager who wants to learn how to play guitar and has to have a les paul just because _________________ plays them i'd be as rich as, well, Gibson. btw, there's no way slash plays off the rack les pauls from guitar center (rumor is they're ghost build by someone who doesn't even work for Gibson so you're gonna need a big disclaimer). go ahead and compare the mark-up between a $200 tennis racquet and a $2000 guitar and tell me who the bigger offender is...

speaking of offenders, if you're going to sue racquet companies you set a false advertising precedent that leads you to sue your parents for sticking money under your pillow in the name of the tooth fairy (sorry for the spoiler, kids). there was no actual tooth fairy as your parents advertised. they deliberately and maliciously deceived you for the sole purpose of allowing you to re-live a fond part of their childhood. those filthy liars! don't forget to stroke them for the cost of therapy and psychological distress...

as a parent, if my son came to me wanting a $200 tennis racquet because _________ plays with it, I know that would be a great time to teach him about how things aren't always as they're advertised (if you've ordered sea-monkeys or x-ray specs from a comic book, you know this already). In fact, i'd probably demo it for him from somewhere and we'd take it out for a nice long hit and I think by the time it was over he would see that it didn't work for him. anyway, if that didn't work, i'd just tell him the tennis player he's supposed to look up to most is me so getting one of my hand-me-down (make that "match-worn") sticks should be the biggest thrill of his young life because that is one of the ACTUAL racquets I used (yup, i'm really looking forward to those teenage years....:rolleyes: ). if he learns this lesson it will be inherently more valuable than a world's worth of disclaimers!


Haha You are right.....

-furthermore, look at any high school tennis team and you'll find one brand or another that seems to be dominant (the one i'm familiar with is babolat) to the point that all of the students on that team buy babs (or whatever) because they don't want to be the one to stick out. in my experience, I've seen many more cases of this type of influence than "I want to be like my favorite pro".
If this is the case why do the kids play with Babolat in the first place? Just because other kids play with them. Certainly that does happen. My son wants Athletic DNA because lots of his tournament buddies are wearing it. But initially it was pro players were playing with Babolat. How many brands tennis rackets are popular with kids that are not used on the tour buy pros? I cannot think of any.

- I think it's hilarious to read posts from people who think that people in general are actually so gullible as to need a disclaimer since we as a society are either so dense that we will believe any glossy picture or web banner placed in front of us (despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary in some cases) or we are too lazy to research products before purchasing them.
Do you realize how many people out there actually think the racket that pros play with is the one you can buy on the shelf?

- I understand that children and teenagers are highly impressionable and that much of the marketing is directed at them for everything from frozen food to toys to music to everything under the sun (because any marketing guru will tell you that children wield a heavy hammer when it comes to purchasing power even though they don't have jobs). so tell me, how specifically are the racquet companies marketing to kids?
I have two boys and they both read Tennis Magazine. There are tons of advertisements in there for Wilson and other companies with the Pro right there on the page.

-speaking of offenders, if you're going to sue racquet companies you set a false advertising precedent that leads you to sue your parents for sticking money under your pillow in the name of the tooth fairy (sorry for the spoiler, kids). there was no actual tooth fairy as your parents advertised. they deliberately and maliciously deceived you for the sole purpose of allowing you to re-live a fond part of their childhood. those filthy liars! don't forget to stroke them for the cost of therapy and psychological distress...
I have no intentions of suing anyone. I do not know how this came into this conversation of the example that I made...... I only think that false advertising is wrong.

-as a parent, if my son came to me wanting a $200 tennis racquet because _________ plays with it, I know that would be a great time to teach him about how things aren't always as they're advertised (if you've ordered sea-monkeys or x-ray specs from a comic book, you know this already).
So you think it is ok that you have to do this? Basically this is what you are saying. Son, "things are not as they are always advertised. It is ok for the companies to do this because dads can always tell their kids what the real truth is." I agree it is the real truth but it is sad you accept that and think it is ok.

- you're going to want them at guitar center too. if I had a grand for every Gibson sold near Christmas as a present for a teenager who wants to learn how to play guitar and has to have a les paul just because _________________ plays them i'd be as rich as, well, Gibson. btw, there's no way slash plays off the rack les pauls from guitar center (rumor is they're ghost build by someone who doesn't even work for Gibson so you're gonna need a big disclaimer). go ahead and compare the mark-up between a $200 tennis racquet and a $2000 guitar and tell me who the bigger offender is...
Gibson? I thought we were talking about tennis rackets. I guess you want to show how other companies do it too so it is ok. But I forgot you are going to tell you son that it is ok.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zcv_HvyhuwM Basalt makes you feel better but Federer does not actually use it. I am sure kids will know he is kidding...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHsiqLuhFMA This guy hits better with Roger's racket but kids know that would not really happen ...

I am sorry but to me it is not ok. Just because other companies are doing it does not make it ok. I hear what you are saying too. There are examples of this all through our society. It is a shame we have to tell our kids about false advertising. It is a shame it is accepted as well.
 
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HRB

Hall of Fame
Would be happier if people turned up with a tube of decent balls once in a while...

Why worry about frames when the strings are dead and the balls have been open more than a day?

Wow...pretty much off topic, but since you mentioned it I hate dead ball d-bags!

I was invited to play in a round robin with a bunch of pushers who regularly have really long rallies. Once I took a wack at the balls they use it was easy to see how they sustained such rallies...completely dead balls. I demanded we use new balls on the three courts, which I sadly had to provide, and proceeded to smoke them off the court.

They were all annoyed and ****ed...I said they should be happy since it pointed out glaring holes in their games. The next week I went up to the courts, sure enough their they were pushing a 10 year old looking stone back and forth to mid court endlessly...WEEEEEEE!

I guess they can start their own USTA category..."Off Speed Low Bounce tourney"...good riddance!
 

TimothyO

Hall of Fame
Do any of the racquet companies say explicitly the the __________ is used by _________? I don't think of them outright say that so it's not quite lying.

Yes,TW's graphene speed review says the specific frame was used by Djoker to win the AO.

If you enjoy song and dance routines call TW retail and ask a staff member if Djoker really used that frame to win the AO. They'll say that Head told them it was the frame Djoker used and, aw shucks, TW just isn't sophisticated enough to know if that's true or not. They just take Head's word for it.

Those who say lying about frame specs isn't a crime are simply idiotic consumers. You could sell them any counterfeit consumer product (tennis frame, food, watch, sun glasses, etc.) and they wouldn't complain. A fool and his money are soon parted. They're the type of person the guys in Times Square prey on when selling "Rolex" watches for $25.
 

hrstrat57

Hall of Fame
Fender has been building "reissue " electric guitars since the early 80's.

Many consider the first reissue stratocasters ( from Fullerton plant 1982/83 ) to be superior / equal to the best of the originals due to the faithful reproduction and closer tolerance quality control. Some of these fetch $3k or more now.

Gibson copied the practice and some of their vintage reissues are over $4k retail. The difference is they are faithful reissues not "paint jobs "

I firmly believe if head did a faithful reissue of the pt 630 they would fly off the racks. Might be super expensive due to the twaron but folks would buy em and play em.
 

vsbabolat

G.O.A.T.
Fender has been building "reissue " electric guitars since the early 80's.

Many consider the first reissue stratocasters ( from Fullerton plant 1982/83 ) to be superior / equal to the best of the originals due to the faithful reproduction and closer tolerance quality control. Some of these fetch $3k or more now.

Gibson copied the practice and some of their vintage reissues are over $4k retail. The difference is they are faithful reissues not "paint jobs "

I firmly believe if head did a faithful reissue of the pt 630 they would fly off the racks. Might be super expensive due to the twaron but folks would buy em and play em.

The sad thing is that Head does faithfully reproduces the PT630 for the players on Tour.:cry:
 

hrstrat57

Hall of Fame
Wow...pretty much off topic, but since you mentioned it I hate dead ball d-bags!

I was invited to play in a round robin with a bunch of pushers who regularly have really long rallies. Once I took a wack at the balls they use it was easy to see how they sustained such rallies...completely dead balls. I demanded we use new balls on the three courts, which I sadly had to provide, and proceeded to smoke them off the court.

They were all annoyed and ****ed...I said they should be happy since it pointed out glaring holes in their games. The next week I went up to the courts, sure enough their they were pushing a 10 year old looking stone back and forth to mid court endlessly...WEEEEEEE!

I guess they can start their own USTA category..."Off Speed Low Bounce tourney"...good riddance!

Ha ha lol this is so true. Back in the day my son and I used to have a ball in the hopper we called the "rally ball " and we wrote "rally ball " on it with a sharpie. It was an old Dunlop Grand Prix and you could not hit it out. Even better was the harder you hit it the louder it got. All the pushers would stop and stare as we turned that thing into an egg!! Ha ha we used to laugh so hard!!

Couple weeks ago a ball being used couple of notorious local pushers rolled into my court. I asked them " is this your chia pet?"

Ha ha ha!!!!
 

BreakPoint

Bionic Poster
Yes,TW's graphene speed review says the specific frame was used by Djoker to win the AO.

If you enjoy song and dance routines call TW retail and ask a staff member if Djoker really used that frame to win the AO. They'll say that Head told them it was the frame Djoker used and, aw shucks, TW just isn't sophisticated enough to know if that's true or not. They just take Head's word for it.

Those who say lying about frame specs isn't a crime are simply idiotic consumers. You could sell them any counterfeit consumer product (tennis frame, food, watch, sun glasses, etc.) and they wouldn't complain. A fool and his money are soon parted. They're the type of person the guys in Times Square prey on when selling "Rolex" watches for $25.
But that's not the same at all. When TW sells you a Head Graphene Speed, it is a genuine authentic Head Graphene Speed. It is NOT a counterfeit. The only difference is that some guy may not use that exact same racquet. But that doesn't make the racquet you bought any less real as it was indeed made by Head and sold by Head.

Likewise, if you buy a Rolex just because Federer wears one, and then you find out that the one that Federer wears is not exactly the same as the one you bought, does that make yours no longer a real Rolex? Absolutely not!
 

pug

Semi-Pro
But that's not the same at all. When TW sells you a Head Graphene Speed, it is a genuine authentic Head Graphene Speed. It is NOT a counterfeit. The only difference is that some guy may not use that exact same racquet. But that doesn't make the racquet you bought any less real as it was indeed made by Head and sold by Head.

Likewise, if you buy a Rolex just because Federer wears one, and then you find out that the one that Federer wears is not exactly the same as the one you bought, does that make yours no longer a real Rolex? Absolutely not!

Rolex does not specify a certain model of watch I don't think but wilson is very specific on a certain racquet, not just a "wilson."
 

BreakPoint

Bionic Poster
Rolex does not specify a certain model of watch I don't think but wilson is very specific on a certain racquet, not just a "wilson."
Actually, they do. You can look at the Rolex print ads and see Federer wearing a specific model.

But the point is, neither the Rolex watch nor the Head racquet are counterfeits just because your hero happens to wear/use a different model. They are still very much genuine authentic Rolex watches and Head racquets and worth their retail prices. Unless you think a genuine authentic Rolex should be worth only $25 just because Federer doesn't wear that specific model.
 

Eltoro

New User
The lawsuit is interesting, but I don't think it has much merit. As has been pointed out, an endorser's preference for a particular frame does not necessarily mean that they use it. There are a hundred of different ways that a manufacturer can claim they are not making deceptive or misleading claims. For example, they can claim that the frame is basically the same but for the amount of customization that they do to alter the frame to the player's preferences.

Interestingly, while most manufacturers do paintjobs etc, I heard or read somewhere that Yonex no longer permits its sponsored players to use paintjobs. Whether this means that they are using frames off the rack, I surely do not know. I doubt it, but at least it's obvious the players are using some sort of Yonex, based on the squarish head shape. I'm curious as to whether other manufacturers will follow this practice.
 

vandre

Hall of Fame
Interestingly, while most manufacturers do paintjobs etc, I heard or read somewhere that Yonex no longer permits its sponsored players to use paintjobs. Whether this means that they are using frames off the rack, I surely do not know. I doubt it, but at least it's obvious the players are using some sort of Yonex, based on the squarish head shape. I'm curious as to whether other manufacturers will follow this practice.

I've read in other threads here that both wawrinka and Hewitt are currently using pjs (on top of yonex frames).
 

Tamiya

Semi-Pro
...Likewise, if you buy a Rolex just because Federer wears one, and then you find out that the one that Federer wears is not exactly the same as the one you bought, does that make yours no longer a real Rolex? Absolutely not!

http://youtu.be/7EgRei8io54

meh, Roger was born 1981... my RWCs predate his existence


The sad thing is that Head does faithfully reproduces the PT630 for the players on Tour.:cry:

they make it... but high chance it the retailers who DON'T want to stock it.
Low volume expensive SKU, limited demand from majority of usual customers.

if the racquet companies were really smart, they'd setup a sales desk @ HQ
or international webstore that sold pro-stocks directly from the factory.
It would only stock non-usual-catalogue items so the usual foreign
distributors can't complain about poached sales.

Or what about totally custom builds?

these days you can get bespoke items made if you can be bothered waiting,
there's multiyear waiting lists for Hermes handbags & Morgan motorcars

dunno about racquets though... $200 wouldn't cover logistic costs,
not even sure if $500ea would. Custom costs a lot more!
Would you pay $1000 per stick, minimum 5pcs?
 

retrowagen

Hall of Fame
It's not unlike NASCAR racing, where the driver of the "stock car" is in a "Chevrolet SS," "Ford Fusion," or "Toyota Camry" - which look sort of like, but in actuality share no part in common with the actual car it is supposed to be.

Yet fans continuously refer to it as a Camry or Fusion. I've never heard of a NASCAR fan trying to sue Toyota, because the exact kind of Camry Kyle Busch drives is not available at the local dealer.

:-?
 

Venetian

Professional
Because who would waste their time and money prosecuting this? Tennis is not that important. Most people just don't care.
 

Brian72

Rookie
I don't understand why people get so uptight about this. For me, I play with what I feel works best for my game. I don't play a racquet because some famously awesome player plays with it.

I vote with my wallet. I play with the racquet I play with because it works for my game. I just don't see the value in getting uptight about something like this, when there are certainly other issues that are worth my time and energy.

This is also the reason why I support companies that don't pay the big bucks for players to use their racquets, like volkl, becker and pro kennex.
 

vandre

Hall of Fame
It's not unlike NASCAR racing, where the driver of the "stock car" is in a "Chevrolet SS," "Ford Fusion," or "Toyota Camry" - which look sort of like, but in actuality share no part in common with the actual car it is supposed to be.

Yet fans continuously refer to it as a Camry or Fusion. I've never heard of a NASCAR fan trying to sue Toyota, because the exact kind of Camry Kyle Busch drives is not available at the local dealer.

:-?

I like this point every time it comes up.

I don't understand why people get so uptight about this. For me, I play with what I feel works best for my game. I don't play a racquet because some famously awesome player plays with it.

I vote with my wallet. I play with the racquet I play with because it works for my game.

yup, I get you. i'm right there with you. I know i'm not rafa or fed so why do I need rafa or fed's racquet? I just need to find what works for me regardless of the brand or pj.
 

Bdarb

Hall of Fame
I play with what I feel works best for my game. I don't play a racquet because some famously awesome player plays with it.

This is also the reason why I support companies that don't pay the big bucks for players to use their racquets, like volkl, becker and pro kennex.

I agree with you, the only thing that irks me (which It doesn't really but you know what I mean) is that they offer products of a higher caliber that aren't offered to the public. Yes I wouldn't want the same specs as pros but companies like head or Wilson make a superior product for their athletes not available to retail customers.

Which is why I like companies like you said or Fischer back when, who just made products all to high standards. It's like they're selling knockoffs of their own product.
 

hrstrat57

Hall of Fame
I agree with you, the only thing that irks me (which It doesn't really but you know what I mean) is that they offer products of a higher caliber that aren't offered to the public. Yes I wouldn't want the same specs as pros but companies like head or Wilson make a superior product for their athletes not available to retail customers.

Which is why I like companies like you said or Fischer back when, who just made products all to high standards. It's like they're selling knockoffs of their own product.

Irks me too
 
What serious player doesn't notice? Who cares?

If you want a pro stock, pay up and you'll get it... Again, why is this a five-page thread?

It's like "what's the best poly" for my Gamma Big Bubba Super Oversized.
 

mtommer

Hall of Fame
It's not unlike NASCAR racing, where the driver of the "stock car" is in a "Chevrolet SS," "Ford Fusion," or "Toyota Camry" - which look sort of like, but in actuality share no part in common with the actual car it is supposed to be.

Yet fans continuously refer to it as a Camry or Fusion. I've never heard of a NASCAR fan trying to sue Toyota, because the exact kind of Camry Kyle Busch drives is not available at the local dealer.

:-?

With the case of NASCAR, the cars aren't being touted as the actual car you can buy at a dealer. Never have been. They also aren't legal and that can be seen outright by every individual. The "Lowe's" car also isn't clearly a Lowe's store. Advertising is one thing. If anybody in NASCAR "advertised" that Jeff Gordon drives "the" Chevy Impala, or some such, you better believe NASCAR fans would have sued GM a long time ago because I promise you, many, many, many, fans would head straight out to a dealer and get Gordon's car if the advertising "hinted" that the car he raced was the car you can buy.

For racquets, I was one of those who got into tennis initially wanting and trying to play "pro" tennis. I wanted Agassi's racquet. Why? Because if I had the exact same racquet and I wasn't as good as Agassi, I knew at least the racquet couldn't be at fault so I needed to put in more time, more effort, more training, more studying, more of everything until I either reached the peak of my ability or became as good as Agassi.

Most kids and newbs to tennis buy gear because of what they see on TV. When I was a newcomer to this game I absolutely saw the advertising as leading me to believe that I could buy what the pros played with. There was the sense, and it's still prevalent today, that pro's weren't simply endorsing a product, they were playing with off the shelf equipment and endorsing that specifically as a reward for being at the pro level. In other words, they weren't getting paid to endorse a company per se, they were getting free off the shelf racquets from a company who had hopes those models would then sell to the public, and sell well as a result of the popularity of the pro.

The best way I can describe this effect and difference is how Canon's commercials with Agassi and the Rebel came off very clearly as nothing but an endorsement. At the time, nothing I remember from Canon ever hinted that Agassi really uses the Rebel, loves the Rebel and is a photographer extraordinaire who's opinion should be valued due to his accomplishments in the photography/media industry.
 
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BreakPoint

Bionic Poster
I agree with you, the only thing that irks me (which It doesn't really but you know what I mean) is that they offer products of a higher caliber that aren't offered to the public. Yes I wouldn't want the same specs as pros but companies like head or Wilson make a superior product for their athletes not available to retail customers.

Which is why I like companies like you said or Fischer back when, who just made products all to high standards. It's like they're selling knockoffs of their own product.
What do you mean by "higher caliber" and "superior product"? The manufacturers just give their sponsored players either old model racquets painted like new models or racquets customized to each player's personal specs. That does not make those racquets either "higher caliber" nor "superior" for anyone else except for the particular sponsored player himself. Most retail customers who try playing with those exact racquets will find them "lower caliber" and "inferior" for their own games.

Spalding sold actual ATP spec racquets many years ago. Almost nobody bought them because almost nobody except actual pros could handle playing with them. They were just too difficult to use for most retail customers.
 

Bdarb

Hall of Fame
^^ awesome, send me the link where I can purchase a case of heads finest calfskin leather grips, I've been looking for some anyway.
 

martini1

Hall of Fame
No manufacturer is stupid enough to say "this is the exact same clone of the racket XXX is using right now. guaranteed." and then sell you a pj.

Don't bet on a class action.
 

TimothyO

Hall of Fame
No manufacturer is stupid enough to say "this is the exact same clone of the racket XXX is using right now. guaranteed." and then sell you a pj.

Oh yes they are. And so is Tennis Warehouse.

"The new Head Graphene Speed Pro passed the test of world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, as he just won the 2013 Australian Open with it as we write this, but we really wanted to know how it would perform for us mere mortals."
http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/reviews/HGSPRO/HGSPROreview.html

I called TW about that quote from their review and they passed the buck saying that Head assured them that Djoker used the Graphene speed at the AO. Which would be news to the tennis world since there's no visual evidence to indicate that Djoker changed frames.

So either TW is lying or utterly incompetent when it comes to knowledge about pro frames actually being used.
 

Rozroz

G.O.A.T.
Oh yes they are. And so is Tennis Warehouse.

"The new Head Graphene Speed Pro passed the test of world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, as he just won the 2013 Australian Open with it as we write this, but we really wanted to know how it would perform for us mere mortals."
http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/reviews/HGSPRO/HGSPROreview.html

I called TW about that quote from their review and they passed the buck saying that Head assured them that Djoker used the Graphene speed at the AO. Which would be news to the tennis world since there's no visual evidence to indicate that Djoker changed frames.

So either TW is lying or utterly incompetent when it comes to knowledge about pro frames actually being used.

hmmm.. interesting.
 

martini1

Hall of Fame
Oh yes they are. And so is Tennis Warehouse.

"The new Head Graphene Speed Pro passed the test of world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, as he just won the 2013 Australian Open with it as we write this, but we really wanted to know how it would perform for us mere mortals."
http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/reviews/HGSPRO/HGSPROreview.html

I called TW about that quote from their review and they passed the buck saying that Head assured them that Djoker used the Graphene speed at the AO. Which would be news to the tennis world since there's no visual evidence to indicate that Djoker changed frames.

So either TW is lying or utterly incompetent when it comes to knowledge about pro frames actually being used.

But is that really coming straight from HEAD?? If it is not, and is not advertised by HEAD themselves, they can just call it a miscommunication.

And even Djoker did use the newest "retail racket", did he use the exact one or "some version of it"? Because the latter is just another customized stick with some element of the new line, and can be called a version of the line.

It would be crazy if the court says players are not allowed to customize their equipment and must use a retail one. Even the retail one got QC spec differences all over the place.

Basically a pro stock stick can be any modified retail stick.

And for people who likes to get into the grey area of things... how about having a player testing a retail stick in practice during a slam, or even play the first round first few games with it in a smaller tournament? Then they can claim the players used those sticks...just not all the time, that's all.
 

vsbabolat

G.O.A.T.
But is that really coming straight from HEAD?? If it is not, and is not advertised by HEAD themselves, they can just call it a miscommunication.

And even Djoker did use the newest "retail racket", did he use the exact one or "some version of it"? Because the latter is just another customized stick with some element of the new line, and can be called a version of the line.

It would be crazy if the court says players are not allowed to customize their equipment and must use a retail one. Even the retail one got QC spec differences all over the place.

Basically a pro stock stick can be any modified retail stick.

And for people who likes to get into the grey area of things... how about having a player testing a retail stick in practice during a slam, or even play the first round first few games with it in a smaller tournament? Then they can claim the players used those sticks...just not all the time, that's all.

Its not about customization. Its about the MOLD and LAYUP being the same. They are not.
 

heninfan99

Talk Tennis Guru
It's still a lie at the end of the day and if we can't depend on large, multi-national companies for honesty then where can we turn???
 
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