I'm a bit of an oddity:
- 7-12 (5 years), beginner to 3.5-ish level:
1992 Prince CTS Synergy Lite (330g, 110", 16x18, strung balance/SW of 2pts HH and 350SW - a total log!), played a few junior club tournaments. Tried probably 10-15 more frames during that time.
- 13-18 (5 years), 3.5-ish level - Only played sporadically, due to other sports taking over (soccer, skiing, baseball). Mix of my Synergy Lite and some of my family's Prince's (Spectrum Comp, Thunder Extender, etc.)
- 19-39 (20 years) - 3.5 - high 3.x level - Played only a few times a year, sometimes skipping a year or two. Used a
2004 Wilson Hammer H-Tour 95 (27.25", 288g, 95", 16x20, 1pt HH, mid-320's SW), admittedly a horrible choice (gift from parents), as I had no clue about racquets. Very narrow sweet spot, could never really gel with it (little did I know it was under-weight and unforgivingly spec'd overall). Tried maybe 5 other frames during that time.
- 39-40 (1 year) - 3.5-4.0 - Fell back into tennis hard during pandemic, playing a few times per week, evaluated probably 20-30 frames over the course of 12-14 months (admittedly, probably too many, for too long, but enjoyed every moment of it).
- 41-present (2+ years) - 4.0+ - Settled on the
'21 Head Auxetic 1.0 Prestige MP-L (99" 21.5mm, 16x19, 65RA, 300g, 31.5cm, low-mid 280's unstrung SW), spec'd up to low-mid 340's g / mid-upper 31.x cm balance / low-mid 330's SW, as a somewhat of a "split the difference" medium between the lumbering 110 that I learned with and the thin, light and unforgiving 95 that I tried to make work, sporadically, for all those years. Has worked pretty well up to now (have beat some decently good competition who were using every mix of racquets you would presume). That said, I am continuing to test more modern, higher power and/or forgiveness alternatives, in an effort to make my outcomes easier to attain with less exhaustion, and have gotten close to switching a couple times, but so far have electeded to remain with the MP-L (have 3 of them for now).
Looking back over that time, only really 7-8 active years of play, with mainly 2 racquets during that time, but over the total 33+ years of playing, a reference point of 50-60 or so frames. Framing all of that in terms of what's best for "leveling up", here's what I've noticed, more often than not:
- The best frames for leveling up are less to offering a specific characteristic for any level in particular, but more often than not offering the same set of underlying qualities, as follows:
- Appropriate power-to-weight ratio to allow for proper mechanics/performance at a given spec, whether stock or customized.
- Enough forgiveness for your level of eye-hand coordination, athletic ability and competitive environment.
- Most consistent string bed possible, free of as much variability or hotspots.
- Most predictable flex and rebound response possible for your mechanics and hitting motion.
- Most confidence-inspiring feel for you, be it something muted or crisp, or somewhere in between; it just has to be something you enjoy (string setup changes notwithstanding).
- Summary:
- The best frames for the most scenarios are those that are tuned with more automatic power/depth and more easy accessibility to spin and shot shaping, than you'd ever need, even on your worst day, against the toughest of opponents, but that are also controllable enough to where you can still hit out, at full gas, on your best day; as long as the frame you have allows for performance inside that envelope, then it's usable at whatever level is under consideration. (Some frames have a wider spread on usability in that sense than others)
Hope some of that was useful! Any questions, go for it.
