dr. godmode
Hall of Fame
I pick the one that compliments your favourite shot
Finding it hard to commit to a racquet. Advice?
- Thread starter pico
- Start date
TennisHound
Legend
You know we’re all racquetaholics, so our thought is “Heck, just keep em all in there and use the one you feel like that day.”
Depending on how old you are, I would suggest something lighter than the RF, with a slightly larger head than the 93p and wider string pattern than the Speed. So that would leave the Gravity Pro and TF40. I would lean toward the TF40
ls206
Hall of Fame
My advice would be have a coaching session with the RF97 and Speed Pro. Have them asses how you play with each one and offer you their advice. Use that to chose one, get rid of the rest and by a 2nd matching racquet.
Use the same racquet, strings and tension for at least 6 months. Then, if you feel like you are lacking something, e.g. power, then you can look at new strings or demo racquets where appropriate.
Oh, and always remember you will have off days and it’s not the racquet’s fault.
Use the same racquet, strings and tension for at least 6 months. Then, if you feel like you are lacking something, e.g. power, then you can look at new strings or demo racquets where appropriate.
Oh, and always remember you will have off days and it’s not the racquet’s fault.
pico
Hall of Fame
I wish ppl gave positive and helpful advice like you (and some of the others) on here. Thank you.
pico
Hall of Fame
Lol
Shaolin
Talk Tennis Guru
Everyone in here is a racquet junkie. I doubt you'll get any helpful advice on commiting to a racquet.
JOSHL
Hall of Fame
We prefer the term Racquetaholic.
louis netman
Hall of Fame
Cut down the variables.
18*20
Rookie
I heard a well-intentioned advise from a senior player that I thought might help others. I am someone who keeps switching between rackets quite often. He suggested me to choose the racket that allows me to play my weakest shot best, and you can adapt your stronger shots quite easily.
Hope this helps!
Hope this helps!
Shaolin
Talk Tennis Guru
I'd argue the opposite. Choose the racquet that is best for your strongest shots and let your weaker shots adapt. You're going to be using your stronger shots a lot more than your weaker ones so you want the best racquet for those shots.
pico
Hall of Fame
I like this! My weakest shot is my ohbh and I found that people attacked it. My Head Gravity Pro allows me to play this shot the best compared to many of my other racquets. Hence, I have been using it the most lately and enjoying the results. Best thing is that it doesn't affect my "strongest" shots either in an adverse way. I was refraining from using it cos I read a lot abt people saying that a smaller head size favors the ohbh. While it may be the general case, I came to the realisation that it is truly what works for you as opposed to trying to abide by some general rule.
the real answer is DONT COMMIT. Variety is the spice of life. Unless a racquet has a component that is a deal breaker (too heavy, too unforgiving, arm problems) then you should still keep it in your inventory if there is something about it that you enjoy. Each racquet will have its pros/cons so just pick based on what you desire at that specific moment in time.
bnjkn
Professional
Agree. The new prestige mid is really good.
J
joohan
Guest
Working off a premise that changing racquets is enjoyable.
I can understand that but my two long term stints with single racquet (model, not quantity) returned way better results than changing around. Plus many people have more than one hobby to splash the cash on.
I used to enjoy trying different stuff until I’ve found out what works for me. No reason to spend time and money on trying something new...
brownbearfalling
Hall of Fame
All great advice here. Even the advice to not settle. I think the racquet journey has to involve tasting what other racquets have to offer before you find the one that suits you. Of course you have to be objective about it otherwise you’ll never narrow down your specs.
Similar to what is206 mentioned, probably the best person to ask about which racquet suits you best is a coach or a hitting partner. They can analyze how heavy you spin is or how fast your shots are going.
Similar to what is206 mentioned, probably the best person to ask about which racquet suits you best is a coach or a hitting partner. They can analyze how heavy you spin is or how fast your shots are going.
1HBHfanatic
Legend
-if you can't be with the one you love, love the one your with!! 
I didn’t enjoy the prestige mid but maybe because stringjob was too stiff. Vcore 95 or vcore pro 97 310/330 are also very nice control oriented racquets that provide good manueverability from the thin beam frame that cuts through the air fast
I’ve actually committed to vcp97 310 and pure strike 98 3rd gen, now I just have 10 sticks with 10 different string setups of various arm friendly copolys, always changing in search of the holy grail...
the main factors in choosing a racquet would be head size, weight, balance/SW, flex, feel. Most importantly is the feel because most companies make a variety of head size to cater to all demographics. Whichever feels the best is the one you should use. Sounds obvious but simple.
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caesar66
Professional
Yeah, I think this hits the nail on the head. I’m so guilty of finding a racquet I like, scraping together another one so I have a pair, then as soon as that second one is in the bag my eyes start wandering. And y’know, who cares? I don’t think most of us would be on here if we didn’t have a bit of Gear Acquisition Syndrome. I will say that at this point how well I serve initially with a racquet makes or breaks it for me. If I don’t get the pop I’m looking for, it’s on for sale/trade no matter how other shots go (lookin’ at you, Clash 100).
Crocodile
G.O.A.T.
I would go with the heaviest one that you can play your best tennis with without having to customise. If it was me I would choose the 93P or TF 40 315, because the RF is too stiff, the speed pro and gravity pro have too much weight in the head and I don’t like that.
The 93P and TF 40 are nice precise feeling frames with very good comfort. The TF is the most versatile of the lot.
If I had to do a shortlist for you I would include the Prestige Pro, Angell K7 Lime, Yonex V Core 95, V Core Pro 97 HD, CX200 18/20 Phantom 100P, and I would do this because maybe the ones you have on your shortlist don’t stand out enough to commit to one.
The other thing is this, if you like the Gravity Pro, try the other variants and maybe customise. I quite like the platform specs of the MP over the ponderous head heavy feel of the Pro
The 93P and TF 40 are nice precise feeling frames with very good comfort. The TF is the most versatile of the lot.
If I had to do a shortlist for you I would include the Prestige Pro, Angell K7 Lime, Yonex V Core 95, V Core Pro 97 HD, CX200 18/20 Phantom 100P, and I would do this because maybe the ones you have on your shortlist don’t stand out enough to commit to one.
The other thing is this, if you like the Gravity Pro, try the other variants and maybe customise. I quite like the platform specs of the MP over the ponderous head heavy feel of the Pro
TennisHound
Legend
3 years later
Hulger
Semi-Pro
Wow, I have exactly the same preference. On the other hand, I love flexier Blade v5 18x20 for groundies, put it’s hard to push winners and get spin for 2nd serve with it and it hasn’t stability like PSC 6.1 95 18x20 nor RF97.
After getting semi deep into racquet manufacturing process and technology, i’m convinced that wholly Braided fibre technology used by Wilson is something special. Blade, RF97 and PSC 95 (and Hyper PS 6.1 95 but not later models) all boast it and it sets them apart from other racquets I have tried with their surgically clean feel.
My advice would be to choose RF97, if your list contains all your options.
I’m going to keep Blade, RF97 and PSC in my bag for a while and see what really provides the best results.
naturalexponent
Legend
Agree that there is something special to me and clicks for me about braided graphite/kevlar from Wilson. Maybe it's just bias from using the PS85 for years, but nothing feels quite as right.
graycrait
Legend
For crying out loud, this is TT. Only 5? "You cannot be serious!"
Ronaldo
Bionic Poster
Maybe 155???
I'd rather wish my weak part less weak than strong part more strong.
nintendoplayer
Semi-Pro
Is there no difference in comfort between these racquets for you? No matter how long you play with whatever frame, no matter how tense the match becomes, you never feel any discomfort or obvious weakness?
If you’re that flexible in your technique and game, then congrats to you.
But I think for most of us, you really know if a racquet works for you when you have some important matches. If you‘re a real nerd, you can record your matches with Swingvision and look at your statistics after the matches. I‘ve recorded so many of my matches with so many different racquets and strings that I now can actually statistically calculate which racquet with which string setup lets me play the most consistent.
And then I would at least „part-time commit“ to one frame during the season. You‘re also probably going to find some strengths / weaknesses about your racquets you‘re not going to find as long as you‘re not hitting mainly with one frame for a certain amount of important matches.
A short comment about the PT2.0: I‘ve spent a lot(!) of time with „deep blue“ and the 93p and both of them are not the best weapons in a spinny modern baseline-rally game in my opinion. You need „more stringbed“, more room for spin, more margin for error and not hitting the frame.
Both are preferable for a game with straighter strokes and the permanent motivation to attack the net and finish the point, in my opinion. A game I like a lot but isn‘t always sufficient, especially on clay against baseline grinders.
Racquets like the 93p and PT 2.0 are perfect examples of racquets that „want you to play a certain way“ in my opinion, so not 100% versatile. But if you‘re that type of player, both of them are fine wine.
To me, both the 93p and Head PT weren‘t the best choice against the many, many baseline grinders I have to face during the season with my club team. Still, the 93p and PT2.0 will always keep a special place in my heart.
Konik_1982
Rookie
I see a big similarity between you and myself here - I had these ones in my bag:
- RF97 v13
- Gravity Pro
- Speed Pro
- Boom Pro
Played quite regularly with all of them, basically depending on current mood. Later I wanted to make a step from this and started to think about the features that I want the most from the racquet. For me it was definitely the serve and mainly the "gut" feel when I play, I needed the racquet to be reliable in critical moments. As I don´t have so much options and time to get coaching lessons, I started to record my matches (using Swingvision) and after each match with each racquet I made some notes how it was. Not only the result but also if I felt good on that day, if I just got lucky since the other guy made so many unforced errors...etc. After some time as I re-watched those matches on the screen, I realized also what was the impact on my opponents with different racquets, how did they reply to my strokes, serves...and it was quite easy job after this. The RF97 has been the best serving racquet I ever held in my hands (and it was a lot...) and it was just confirmed by those videos from my matches. Most aces, or straight won points with this one. Also in normal rallies it made the biggest impact. So the choice was clear
Nevertheless, I still keep the Boom Pro in my bag when I feel like I want to be more playful on that day or if it is a match with weaker opponent.
The video from a match can show you a lot of things that you cannot see during the match itself. And this helped me to analyze my "problem"
- RF97 v13
- Gravity Pro
- Speed Pro
- Boom Pro
Played quite regularly with all of them, basically depending on current mood. Later I wanted to make a step from this and started to think about the features that I want the most from the racquet. For me it was definitely the serve and mainly the "gut" feel when I play, I needed the racquet to be reliable in critical moments. As I don´t have so much options and time to get coaching lessons, I started to record my matches (using Swingvision) and after each match with each racquet I made some notes how it was. Not only the result but also if I felt good on that day, if I just got lucky since the other guy made so many unforced errors...etc. After some time as I re-watched those matches on the screen, I realized also what was the impact on my opponents with different racquets, how did they reply to my strokes, serves...and it was quite easy job after this. The RF97 has been the best serving racquet I ever held in my hands (and it was a lot...) and it was just confirmed by those videos from my matches. Most aces, or straight won points with this one. Also in normal rallies it made the biggest impact. So the choice was clear
Nevertheless, I still keep the Boom Pro in my bag when I feel like I want to be more playful on that day or if it is a match with weaker opponent.
The video from a match can show you a lot of things that you cannot see during the match itself. And this helped me to analyze my "problem"
