How many of you wanted a Pro's racket soo desperately, bought it, but got disappointed/hated it/still don't want to admit it?

[s_p_a_c_e_m_a_n_]

Personally, I've always wanted one or another's Pro racket throughout all these years, because you know, "If they play with it it has to be the best, right??"

Always tried them (famous Heads, Wilsons, Babolats), but it turned out that they usually were never really what I wanted, and turned out that other rackets fitted me better.

Even though i really really really wanted it to work (I have to like it, because of Pro player!!), and maybe it was okay-ish, there was always another one that was better for me.

So after buying some lemons, I started demoing the hell out of rackets

 

[Lorenn]

Personally, I've always wanted one or another's Pro racket throughout all these years, because you know, "If they play with it it has to be the best, right??"

If they are lucky it was the best racquet ..."for them". That is before knowing that often their racquets are just paint jobs of the racquet(s) they are endorsing. I think the important thing is to know your game and to know what works for you.

 

[Power Player]

I mean, it's pretty easy to admit you are not on the level of a pro player if you have any self-awareness at all. I have tried pro-stock frames and really enjoyed the feel of some of them while also realizing it wasn't for me long term. The Blade Pro is a great example. I can compete with that frame, but it really requires you to be on your A game at all times and that's not easy.

The best for a pro who has great hands, and insane fitness is probably not the best for even a solid college player. It's just a different game at the pro level of tennis. Still fun to try the frames out and get an understanding of what weights and swingweights you can compete with.

 

[joah310]

wow way to crush our dreams..... But on a more serious note, pros are pros for a reason. They can handle these sticks, and most of us cant. Of course theres exceptions to this, like krygios's exone xi, which personally I think is a really good racket, but if i were to every try djokovic or nadal's stick, it would be quite difficult to do so. Something like Karatsev's 340 sw and 340 weight might be a nice spec to play with though, but playing with his stick isn't gonna give any benefits over whats being sold retail. to a certain degree i guess. I would still love to get my hands on a pro's racket or a prostock someday.

 

[roger presley]

I mean, it's pretty easy to admit you are not on the level of a pro player if you have any self-awareness at all. I have tried pro-stock frames and really enjoyed the feel of some of them while also realizing it wasn't for me long term. The Blade Pro is a great example. I can compete with that frame, but it really requires you to be on your A game at all times and that's not easy.

The best for a pro who has great hands, and insane fitness is probably not the best for even a solid college player. It's just a different game at the pro level of tennis. Still fun to try the frames out and get an understanding of what weights and swingweights you can compete with.

Same here but with H19 and PT57A ,not with Blade Pro and H22

 

[snoflewis]

Have a pair of matched pro stock ig radical pros that im trying to figure out what to do with. Good sticks... just not good enough to use them effectively

 

[CosmosMpower]

Tried Ultra 2.0 Tour (Monfils) and Blade Pro 18X20, both were meh.

 

[kojihan]

Blade Pro has an awesome feel, but it's very demanding. There are a variety of selections available nowadays before considering a pro stock

 

[SinneGOAT]

While I’ve never owned a pro stock, I know for a fact I wouldn’t be able to tote a pro level spec for 2 and 1/2 hours.

 

[RVT]

When I was in 6th grade I was convinced that if I could swing Manny Sanguillen's bat, I'd be unstoppable. I whined incessantly until my parents bought one for me. Turns out, a 40 oz bat isn't a great idea for an 11 year old...

I never let on, though. Choked up on that sucker and let it rip!

 

[lefty10spro]

Only professional's actual racket I ever hit with belonged Robert Kendrick, former world #69 and took Rafa to 5 sets at Wimbledon. This Fischer racket was extended length, heavy, very flexy, with a tiny sweetspot. One of the worst hits of my life. Their needs are indeed not the needs of us mere mortals!

 

[Dartagnan64]

I suspect the only pro stock rackets I've ever used were wooden frames. Not much customization you can do with a 14 oz wooden racket.

Looking at most of the published pro specs I'm sure I could play with most of them since I can play perfectly well with a POG and it's beefier than a lot of pros use today. Not sure any would be my best frame but I can play well with anything and play poorly with anything. Rackets are very far down the list of variables affecting my performance. Somewhere around shoes.

 

[mhkeuns]

As mentioned above, I really enjoyed the feel of the Pro Stock Six One 95, H19 and Mardy Fish’s personal frame that was painted as the BLX Six One 95 but was 27.5”. Out of the three, I only kept the H19 18x20 because I just could not play for a long duration with those other rackets. They all felt great and produced some of the heaviest shots but were obviously made for much higher skilled players (*super, super heavy) , and I was only able to effectively swing it for only a few games (*not even a full set). The H19 came in at 305 grams unstrung, so I took time making it feel comfortable and usable for my game (*which took a long time). It has actually become my favorite because of its ultra flexible feel - which made it really, really difficult to get used to in the beginning. If I had to do it all over, I’d probably choose the Blade 98, Pure Strike 18x20 or the Speed Pro and put in the same effort to get the most out of the rackets. Getting used to a ProStock frame was a difficult and at times a tedious experience.

 

[n8dawg6]

I mean, it's pretty easy to admit you are not on the level of a pro player if you have any self-awareness at all. I have tried pro-stock frames and really enjoyed the feel of some of them while also realizing it wasn't for me long term. The Blade Pro is a great example. I can compete with that frame, but it really requires you to be on your A game at all times and that's not easy.

The best for a pro who has great hands, and insane fitness is probably not the best for even a solid college player. It's just a different game at the pro level of tennis. Still fun to try the frames out and get an understanding of what weights and swingweights you can compete with.

excellent post. we can close the thread

 

[michael valek]

I tried some head prostocks and pacific prostocks which were unusable for me. Then tried an h22 which seems to make the game easier, not harder.

 

[aer0pr0]

i was an babolat aeropro user... bought a pair of the newly rf97 autograph in 2015 imagining i would play like Federer big mistake, a 340gram mistake.. not for everyone that racket

 

[s_p_a_c_e_m_a_n_]

i was an babolat aeropro user... bought a pair of the newly rf97 autograph in 2015 imagining i would play like Federer big mistake, a 340gram mistake.. not for everyone that racket

Lol, I demo'ed that one too.. And after 5 minutes: "Hmm maybe not..."

 

[Oval_Solid]

yes i agree for some reason the rf97 at 340 grams isnt usable but the ps 90 with the same weight is

 

[Antónis]

Some years ago I bought a Dunlop Aerogel 300 4D Tour pro stock on that big auction site we cannot mention here, at the time I thought I bought a retail, but when the racquet arrived I noticed something "different":
So, this was the pro stock:
DSC_0001_zpsdt083y8r by António Duarte, no Flickr

This is the general retail available I end up buying latter:

DSC_0025_zpso3o7yuce by António Duarte, no Flickr

Notice the "3Hundred" inscription on the throat piece, the pro stock throat bridge is fully white, usually this was the place where the player's name or nickname was written

And than there was this:
DSC_0002_zpsbjjfwg35 by António Duarte, no Flickr

So, compared to retail's specs, the pro stock was flexier (59 vs. 63), had higher SW, higher static weight, etc

Same mold, different layup, messed specs with extra weight

Served like a dream, but I couldn't deal well with all that flex and the way it handled.

I still keep the retail Ag, mine is weighted up and it's a little beast of a racquet, very unforgiving for a 98, I only wish there was a 16x19 version of this stick

 

[kevin qmto]

I really want to buy that Baghdatis personal stick over on that one auction site. But I ain’t spending 1.8k on it no matter how big a fan I am. It’d have to drop to about 1k to make me consider it.

 

[marceloriosfan]

guilty...

hit with one of Rafa's racquets through a tennis industry friend = never again

 

[Purestriker]

I tried some head prostocks and pacific prostocks which were unusable for me. Then tried an h22 which seems to make the game easier, not harder.

Have not tried Head, but I have an H22 and I love it. The Blade Pro is good, but I prefer the H22.

 

[zipplock]

H19 16x19 is pure magic, pro or not.

 

[TennisHound]

Had H22s and a few pro stock Blades. The H22 was wayyy head heavy and virtually unusable. Pro stock blades felt completely different (head heavy). I didn’t like either of them.

 

[joohan]

I really want to buy that Baghdatis personal stick over on that one auction site. But I ain’t spending 1.8k on it no matter how big a fan I am. It’d have to drop to about 1k to make me consider it.

Just buy a used VT98PRO. Of course that Cypriot blue is nice, but it’s the mold that makes the frame what it is...and it’s one heck of a mold for sure.

 

[Purestriker]

Had H22s and a few pro stock Blades. The H22 was wayyy head heavy and virtually unusable. Pro stock blades felt completely different (head heavy). I didn’t like either of them.

I think it depends on if it was customized or not. The one I got is very balanced, only had weight in the handle (they filled it with tungsten). The Blade Pro is very head heavy.

 

[TennisHound]

I think it depends on if it was customized or not. The one I got is very balanced, only had weight in the handle (they filled it with tungsten). The Blade Pro is very head heavy.

These we’re not. It would’ve taken gobs of tail weighting to get it balanced.

 

[Lorenn]

These we’re not. It would’ve taken gobs of tail weighting to get it balanced.

Leather Grip and tons of weight/foam/etc in the handle. Part of the problem is a pure prostock frame is designed to be customized. So they are likely to start quite head heavy.

 

[Dartagnan64]

I'd love to hit a fully customized pro stock for S&G, but I can't imagine using one daily. I wouldn't hit a pro golfer's irons very well either given the microscopic sweet spots..

 

[n8dawg6]

im about to buy another boomer stick now that theyre on sale and still blue

 

[Antónis]

Leather Grip and tons of weight/foam/etc in the handle. Part of the problem is a pure prostock frame is designed to be customized. So they are likely to start quite head heavy.

Not necessarily: they usually start very light to be customized, that's true (but not all of them), sometimes only the hairpin because some players like to have different handle shape than the brand offers (Thiem allegedly has Head handles on his Bab's), or personalized sizes, or whatever they like.
It's not unusual to see a bone pro stock weighting like 250 grams or so, and than it's customized to player's preferences, with silicone, lead, tungsten, leather grips, etc. by P1, or any similar

 

[anarosevoli]

Bought a Wilson Monfils 100, started to string, but string was too short, it's in fact at least 105 in² lol. Threw it away and stayed with my crappy old H19.

(o.k. I lied, had to string it for somebody else, but it is really OS, not 100)

 

[TennisHound]

Leather Grip and tons of weight/foam/etc in the handle. Part of the problem is a pure prostock frame is designed to be customized. So they are likely to start quite head heavy.

Obviously.

 

[d-quik]

#69

 

[mtommer]

Hmmmm....well, I've never bought a pro's racquet so I don't have any buyer's remorse so to speak. I have played with pro, well juniors going pro anyway, racquets. Some I liked, some I didn't. I've never liked any of them as much as my own though nor were the racquets particularly difficult to handle/play with.

 

[gebruikershaes]

If you don’t switch racquets too often you start to develop your game around that frame. Switching to a different racquet is usually not going to feel good. Pro frame or not. That’s why the pros never switch.

 

[Lorenn]

Not necessarily: they usually start very light to be customized, that's true (but not all of them), sometimes only the hairpin because some players like to have different handle shape than the brand offers (Thiem allegedly has Head handles on his Bab's), or personalized sizes, or whatever they like.
It's not unusual to see a bone pro stock weighting like 250 grams or so, and than it's customized to player's preferences, with silicone, lead, tungsten, leather grips, etc. by P1, or any similar

Exactly. I was just trying to say that normally, depending on where you get them, pro stocks are designed to be customized. So depending on the player and where in the chain you get them two racquets can be quite different. The second issue would be everyone's body is different and what they need to work on in their swing is different. SO getting a racquet finaly tuned for someone else might not work for you.