Club switched to Penn Championship balls

[mmk]

My club supplies regular duty balls for club league matches. A few years ago my club switched from Wilson Championship balls to Babolat Gold Championship balls. I wasn't a fan of the Babolats, they felt harder than the Wilsons, but after a while I decided they weren't too bad. When the switch was made I said to the then head pro that they must have gotten a really good deal on the Babolats, and he confirmed that.
The club just switched to Penn Championship balls, and they feel more like the Wilsons, but the seams are sloppy. One ball last night had a wide spot on the seam that was about a centimeter in diameter, another had a centimeter-long raised portion on the seam. Most of us in my league (3.5-4.0 and one 4.5) aren't good enough for the balls to make a difference, I was just surprised at the lack of uniformity on the seams, which I never saw with the Wilsons or Babolats.

 

[tennis tom]

Most of us in my league (3.5-4.0 and one 4.5) aren't good enough for the balls to make a difference,...

That's a commendable admission on your part!

 

[KingBugsy]

The Penn championship ball is a very poor ball imo. They are dead out of the can, and as you pointed out, they are inconsistent. Wilson champs are a little bit better. I like the Dunlop champs the best out of the championship level tennis balls. It has a good feel and bounce, but not the durability. Once you try a better tennis ball, you really start to realize how bad the championship level balls are. Penn champs are the worst.

The Wilson US Open ball and Babolat Gold are excellent, and the Dunlop ATP ball is my favorite. Dunlop ATP has great feel, bounce and consistency, but also has the best durability of the bunch. Playing with these good balls actually helped improve my tennis. Took a while for me to figure this out!