A little more than a week ago I got the chance to try out clothes from the new brand PlayBrave. My name is Patrik Rosenholm and I am a swedish tennis player that has been ranked as high as 723. When I saw on TW that a new brand has made specific tennis clothing in merino wool I got excited. My mother has been teaching textile handicraft in school for almost 40 years and she has been telling me since I began playing tennis that she can not understand why nobody tries to make a breatheable and moisture wicking shirt out of a natural fiber like wool. So I contacted PlayBrave and after some e-mailing back and forth about the tennis clothes and performance I got some garments and acessories shipped to me in Sweden. Since I have read two threads here on TT about clothes from PlayBrave I thought I should post my thoughts about them.
Blake Merino Polo
Merino wool is with out a doubt the best material you can use to make a shirt for playing tennis in, or any other sport for that matter. The wool is in a way like polyester in that it wicks a way the moisture. I have never been a big fan of playing in cotton due to the fact that it bacomes heavy by absorbing the sweat from your body. Neither wool nor polyester does that. The merino wool also has some fantastic characteristics in that it is keeping you warm when it is cold outside and keeping you cool when it is hot outside. Moreover, the wool in the polo is elastic and lightweight. But the best thing for players like me traveling around the world playing tournaments is that it does not smell. Wool wicks away the sweat and in some way it also keeps the bacteria that causes odor away from growing. Of course it is also macchine washable, has UV- protection and sustainable due to the fact that it is biodegradable. I can tell you that I have never worn a shirt this comfortable on a tennis court, and I have been sponsored by brands like Lacoste, Lotto and Under Armour. The most amazing thing with PlayBrave is its attention to detail. The packaging the clothes arrived in and the tag that tells you about the logo and the philosophy of the brand screams quality. The minimalistic design and the safety pin used instead of the usually plastic that connects the tag to the garment is something that atleast tells me that this shirt is going to be of high quality. Then we have the buttons on the polo and the stiching. As I said, my mother has been teaching textile handicraft in school for almost 40 years and she thought that all the garments I recevied from PlayBrave were made to a very high standard. No loose threads and made out of first class materials was what she said. I have some more positive thing to say about the Blake Merino Polo. Usually you will find a tag behind your neck while wearing a polo. A tag telling you the size of the shirt and some more information. PlayBrave removed this tag and insted printed the details on the inside of the polo. This eliminates the rash some people can get from that tag. Also the polo has an extra layer of textile at the part where the collar and the rest of the shirt is sewed together to reduce the chance that the stiches will brake apart. The logos on the polo is made out of plastic and I think glued to the shirt. This means that there is no stiching inside the shirt. I do have one negative thing to say about the Blake Merino Polo. I did find the button placement not to my liking. I would like the second button to be place a little bit higher up so that the shirt will have a tighter fit in around the neck and shoulder area. This is of coruse just nitty picking and I really think this polo is the best shirt I have worn on a tennis court.
Terence Technical Tee
This shirt recived the same attention to details from PlayBrave and the only difference from the Blake polo is that the Teraence Tee is not a polo and is made out of polyester. The ony think I can add about this shirt is that it is that the polyester feels much softer than my Lacoste or Under Armour shirts. I do not know why but it feels better on teh skin to me. As with the Blake Merino Polo I have one thing that I would like to point out as someting negative. And it is that I feel like the size of the Terence Technical Tee is a bit larger than the Blake Merino Polo. I would like the to shirts to fit exactly the same.
Luther Athletic Short
Very nice and deep pockets that easily carries a tennisball and prevents it from hoping out. The shorts are elastic and have some very nice side panels and a part in the crotch that are made out of mesh and is extra elastic. But the big thing about the Luther Athletic Short is the Scothguard that makes the shorts water resistant. If you spill something on the shorts it will just run off then. This creates a non smelly pair of shorts. One thing about the details again. The cord used to tighten the fit of the shorts in the waist is a flat one made out of cotton. It is maybe nothing you may recognize at a first glance but it is much easier to tie a wide, flat, cotton cord than a round one that most brands use.
Max Fleece Tank
This vest is light weight and made out of eleastic fleece. I do not use some extralayer when warming up... before trying the Max Fleece Tank. When playing in this garment I do not get cold and the vest is so light that I do not even feel that I have anything more than a T-shirt on me. This vest is really nice to wear during warm up.
Pierce Fleece Jacket
Just like the Max Tank this jacket is made out of extreme light weight fleece. Apart from being warm, it has pre bent elbow shaping making it more comfortable to play in and also this jacket has some thumb holes to keep you hands warm when you are not playing.The zipper has some kind of textile on it to prevent anything from getting through. A nice touch I think. I almost forgot to include that PlayBrave have done a smart little thing of putting some textile on top of the zipper so that the zipper will not touch your skin and irritate it. A perfect jacket to wear off the court and between matches.
Marcus Merino Gilet
This vest is made of merino fleece and has the same characteristics as the Blake Merino Polo. But of course it is thicker and warmer. The zipper has textile on top of it just like the Pierce Fleece jacket. This is a piece of clothing I will be wearing a lot when we start playing outdoors again here in Sweden in the end of april.
Samson Softshell Jacket
This is a polyester jacket that is water and wind resistant making it good to wear during really cold wether or when traveling to and from matches and practice. It has a two way zipper so when you sit down you can use the lower zipper to make it more comfortable. The Samson Jacket also has a fleece-lining making it warm and a plastic layer on top of the zipper to make it totally water proof. Just like the Pierce Fleece Tank this jacket has pre bent elbow shaping so that it is easier to wear while playing. Last but not least this jacket has some zippers under the arms for ventilation and also to increase the range of motion when you are playing.
I also recived some wristband made from cotton from PlayBrave. They are thinner than my Lacoste, Under Armour and Lotto ones but they do absorb all the sweat and retain their shape after macchine washing them. I have not been using them long enough to say that they are better or worse than anything else I have tried before. But since the other stuff I have tested from PlayBrave have been very nice I doubt that the wrist bands are not as good.
One thing that PlayBrave have developed that no other brand has is a glove for playing tennis in. The glove is made out of the same fabric as the Samson Softshell Jacket. I have not tried the glove and I belived when I first saw it that it would not work or bring anything useful to the table so to speak. But now I could se myself wearing it during the first couple of weeks when I start playing outdoors again to keep my hands warm.
Blake Merino Polo
Merino wool is with out a doubt the best material you can use to make a shirt for playing tennis in, or any other sport for that matter. The wool is in a way like polyester in that it wicks a way the moisture. I have never been a big fan of playing in cotton due to the fact that it bacomes heavy by absorbing the sweat from your body. Neither wool nor polyester does that. The merino wool also has some fantastic characteristics in that it is keeping you warm when it is cold outside and keeping you cool when it is hot outside. Moreover, the wool in the polo is elastic and lightweight. But the best thing for players like me traveling around the world playing tournaments is that it does not smell. Wool wicks away the sweat and in some way it also keeps the bacteria that causes odor away from growing. Of course it is also macchine washable, has UV- protection and sustainable due to the fact that it is biodegradable. I can tell you that I have never worn a shirt this comfortable on a tennis court, and I have been sponsored by brands like Lacoste, Lotto and Under Armour. The most amazing thing with PlayBrave is its attention to detail. The packaging the clothes arrived in and the tag that tells you about the logo and the philosophy of the brand screams quality. The minimalistic design and the safety pin used instead of the usually plastic that connects the tag to the garment is something that atleast tells me that this shirt is going to be of high quality. Then we have the buttons on the polo and the stiching. As I said, my mother has been teaching textile handicraft in school for almost 40 years and she thought that all the garments I recevied from PlayBrave were made to a very high standard. No loose threads and made out of first class materials was what she said. I have some more positive thing to say about the Blake Merino Polo. Usually you will find a tag behind your neck while wearing a polo. A tag telling you the size of the shirt and some more information. PlayBrave removed this tag and insted printed the details on the inside of the polo. This eliminates the rash some people can get from that tag. Also the polo has an extra layer of textile at the part where the collar and the rest of the shirt is sewed together to reduce the chance that the stiches will brake apart. The logos on the polo is made out of plastic and I think glued to the shirt. This means that there is no stiching inside the shirt. I do have one negative thing to say about the Blake Merino Polo. I did find the button placement not to my liking. I would like the second button to be place a little bit higher up so that the shirt will have a tighter fit in around the neck and shoulder area. This is of coruse just nitty picking and I really think this polo is the best shirt I have worn on a tennis court.
Terence Technical Tee
This shirt recived the same attention to details from PlayBrave and the only difference from the Blake polo is that the Teraence Tee is not a polo and is made out of polyester. The ony think I can add about this shirt is that it is that the polyester feels much softer than my Lacoste or Under Armour shirts. I do not know why but it feels better on teh skin to me. As with the Blake Merino Polo I have one thing that I would like to point out as someting negative. And it is that I feel like the size of the Terence Technical Tee is a bit larger than the Blake Merino Polo. I would like the to shirts to fit exactly the same.
Luther Athletic Short
Very nice and deep pockets that easily carries a tennisball and prevents it from hoping out. The shorts are elastic and have some very nice side panels and a part in the crotch that are made out of mesh and is extra elastic. But the big thing about the Luther Athletic Short is the Scothguard that makes the shorts water resistant. If you spill something on the shorts it will just run off then. This creates a non smelly pair of shorts. One thing about the details again. The cord used to tighten the fit of the shorts in the waist is a flat one made out of cotton. It is maybe nothing you may recognize at a first glance but it is much easier to tie a wide, flat, cotton cord than a round one that most brands use.
Max Fleece Tank
This vest is light weight and made out of eleastic fleece. I do not use some extralayer when warming up... before trying the Max Fleece Tank. When playing in this garment I do not get cold and the vest is so light that I do not even feel that I have anything more than a T-shirt on me. This vest is really nice to wear during warm up.
Pierce Fleece Jacket
Just like the Max Tank this jacket is made out of extreme light weight fleece. Apart from being warm, it has pre bent elbow shaping making it more comfortable to play in and also this jacket has some thumb holes to keep you hands warm when you are not playing.The zipper has some kind of textile on it to prevent anything from getting through. A nice touch I think. I almost forgot to include that PlayBrave have done a smart little thing of putting some textile on top of the zipper so that the zipper will not touch your skin and irritate it. A perfect jacket to wear off the court and between matches.
Marcus Merino Gilet
This vest is made of merino fleece and has the same characteristics as the Blake Merino Polo. But of course it is thicker and warmer. The zipper has textile on top of it just like the Pierce Fleece jacket. This is a piece of clothing I will be wearing a lot when we start playing outdoors again here in Sweden in the end of april.
Samson Softshell Jacket
This is a polyester jacket that is water and wind resistant making it good to wear during really cold wether or when traveling to and from matches and practice. It has a two way zipper so when you sit down you can use the lower zipper to make it more comfortable. The Samson Jacket also has a fleece-lining making it warm and a plastic layer on top of the zipper to make it totally water proof. Just like the Pierce Fleece Tank this jacket has pre bent elbow shaping so that it is easier to wear while playing. Last but not least this jacket has some zippers under the arms for ventilation and also to increase the range of motion when you are playing.
I also recived some wristband made from cotton from PlayBrave. They are thinner than my Lacoste, Under Armour and Lotto ones but they do absorb all the sweat and retain their shape after macchine washing them. I have not been using them long enough to say that they are better or worse than anything else I have tried before. But since the other stuff I have tested from PlayBrave have been very nice I doubt that the wrist bands are not as good.
One thing that PlayBrave have developed that no other brand has is a glove for playing tennis in. The glove is made out of the same fabric as the Samson Softshell Jacket. I have not tried the glove and I belived when I first saw it that it would not work or bring anything useful to the table so to speak. But now I could se myself wearing it during the first couple of weeks when I start playing outdoors again to keep my hands warm.
... But anyway when I play my best and he is a little bit unfocus I do keep up with him. I win one or two times out of ten if we play without serve to from the backcourt. We haven't played that much with serve thou. The last time we played some games I was down 6-5 and serving when the time was up. It was the day before his first round of Stockholm Open. So, as I said if I am playing my best tennis I may be able to get it to a tiebreak. But then again when I am a little bit unfocus and he is playing good it is almost impossible to hold serve.
