TobyTopspin
Professional
This was funny. It made my day......
Racquets don't matter. Seriously.
- Thread starter daved
- Start date
This was funny. It made my day......
pshulam
Hall of Fame
I thought it was humorous but insightful. Equipment does matter!
Hahaha, this reminds me of this guy and his wife I know. They have the nicest bags and apparel and they're members at the local club (not cheap for membership) but they kind of... suck. The wife actually hits the ball better in my opinion, but the husband is a double fault king. The funniest part is he actually bags his rackets in plastic like the pros and makes sure everyone sees that he does this.
kingcheetah
Hall of Fame
RoddickAce
Hall of Fame
sort of like if you are a good photographer, you would be able to take good photographs with any camera. However, good photographers prefer to use certain brands of camera
I agree with this analogy and the other posters who cited similar logic to this one.
If we look at the flip side to the OP....
Federer or a random 6.5/6.0 looks at some 4.5's and 5.0's playing, and note that the 4.5/5.0's have mismatched racquets. Are they then supposed to deduce that the only reason why the 4.5/5.0's are inferior to themselves is that the 4.5/5.0's have poor equipment?
It depends on how you define "power" of racquet and how you test it, IMHO.
Maybe I use the word "Power" to sum up as to general stroke production or
loosely include many parameters such as head size.
In real life, I think there is huge difference in how you feel when you play
with PS 90 compared to, say, Youtek IG Emxtreme Pro.
roundiesee
Hall of Fame
Backhanded Compliment
Legend
Really it only matters that you have something you feel comfortable with. No matter how many rackets I have I always have just one that I can use and mostly forget I am using.
Really The racket and setup only matters when you are playing someone who is of a similar level and match up well against.
Really The racket and setup only matters when you are playing someone who is of a similar level and match up well against.
floydcouncil
Professional
My Wilson PS85 makes me look thinner. THAT'S important to me!!
corbind
Professional
Agree fully.
jelle v
Hall of Fame
Of course rackets matter..
Maybe they don't really matter in the sense that the level of your game is mostly dependent on good footwork, fitness, good court positioning and good position for striking the ball.
But a racket does matter and even a backup racket that is the same as your primary racket matter. I i break a string in my 11.3 oz Head Radical and I have to play with an 10.5 oz Granny Stick after that, that will have a huge impact on your game.
Maybe they don't really matter in the sense that the level of your game is mostly dependent on good footwork, fitness, good court positioning and good position for striking the ball.
But a racket does matter and even a backup racket that is the same as your primary racket matter. I i break a string in my 11.3 oz Head Radical and I have to play with an 10.5 oz Granny Stick after that, that will have a huge impact on your game.
A
Attila_the_gorilla
Guest
I've heard of this guy called Robert Federline or something, he's Swedish I think. He's been looking to switch to a larger racket but keeps returning to his smaller one.
Of course he's only about 3.5 I think.
Of course he's only about 3.5 I think.
If you can adapt to any racquet and string combination in a game then maybe it they don't matter. That is a talent in itself. I spent a long time demoing racquets and trying to find string combinations and tensions when I narrowed down to a few of them. With my own experiences playing with mostly mid sizes and some 95", the strings and tension matter most.
I watch people at my local club switch to different racquets that they own in warm ups, drills, or even in games and they end up shanking everything for 20 minutes. But if that's not a problem for you, then I'd say your set and racquet/string expenses should be no burden, sir! Hello Kitty racquets are on sale for $12.
I watch people at my local club switch to different racquets that they own in warm ups, drills, or even in games and they end up shanking everything for 20 minutes. But if that's not a problem for you, then I'd say your set and racquet/string expenses should be no burden, sir! Hello Kitty racquets are on sale for $12.
I was a competitive tennis player as a kid. At age 16 I have lost interest in tennis and stopped playing it altogether. In my early 20s tennis grabbed me again. I decided to buy new racquets for the comeback. I thought that racquets don`t matter much and I bought a racquet mostly based on the looks of it. My game wasn`t going anywhere. After I was recently blown of the court (6:0) by a player, who I thought I could beat, I decided to buy something new. This time I have playtested just about any racquet I could get my hands on. After testing about 20 different frames, I found that I was playing with the wrong racquet for the last 7 years (at least 2/3 of the racquets felt better to me, than my own). A week after the crushing defeat I was playing the same guy with one of the racquets I tested and this time I have blown him of the court (and that with a racquet which I did not even end up buying).
So I would say that racquets definately matter. And it is also very important to test the racquet yourself. During my playtest I was hitting with many racquets which have very high scores on TW and are also highly praised by the forum members, but felt awful to me (for instance Head speed, Wilson blade, Prince 98 tour).
So I would say that racquets definately matter. And it is also very important to test the racquet yourself. During my playtest I was hitting with many racquets which have very high scores on TW and are also highly praised by the forum members, but felt awful to me (for instance Head speed, Wilson blade, Prince 98 tour).
Mick
Legend
for me, the string is more important. One time, I bought a racquet with the wrong string and I really hated it. I re-strung the racquet and it played great from then on. Also, suppose you like low string tension (45 lbs) and had to play with another racquet with very tight string tension (70+ lbs), you would probably notice more on how different the string is than how the racquet is.
SCRAP IRON
Professional
I don't blame you for not liking the regular Wilson Blade. But you should try the new Blade 98 "Spin Effect." It is totally different. It is a lighter racket with an ample sweet spot. If you are at least a 4.0 player with full strokes, you will find this racket beneficial.
D
DefensiveTennis
Guest
If I play with a Head Titanium S6. I will play at least a full level lower than my current level.
ClintimusPrime
Rookie
Racquets definitely matter. I play with a 13 ounce pro staff 95. I demoed the new six one line this last week. Picking up a stick that's barely 11oz strung completely threw off my timing and had me over swinging because I'm used to the heft of my heavy stick. Sure anyone can adjust to another racquet, but if I did that in the middle of a match my game would be quite thrown off. Especially on shots that require good timing...
98s is not yet available in my country. I have ended up buying a six.one 95s (before I was playing with a radical pro)
mental midget
Hall of Fame
rackets matter but if you have solid fundamentals you're not going to lose to somebody who isn't in your league. you might have to 'think' a little more about technique etc. but it's not that hard to figure it out after a game or so.
i'm pretty sure you could hand me a wooden racket an i'll survive against a player i'd normally take down without a problem, even if they had fresh overgrip, a new string job and a dope headband. against an equally matched opponent, i'd be in big trouble.
i'm pretty sure you could hand me a wooden racket an i'll survive against a player i'd normally take down without a problem, even if they had fresh overgrip, a new string job and a dope headband. against an equally matched opponent, i'd be in big trouble.
kingcheetah
Hall of Fame
Unless its one super-powered headband...
Winners or Errors
Legend
Racquets matter. The OP posted this in a forum dedicated to discussing tennis racquets. I have four sets of tennis racquets and enjoy playing with all of them. I will never be a 5.0 player (no time, getting older, etc.) but I enjoy tennis and am competitive at the 4.0-4.5 level. If tennis, for you, is not at least in part about the sensations when the ball hits the strings and the sight of a well struck ball wreaking havoc on your opponent, and is simply about winning or losing, you are either a professional or taking yourself way too seriously...
robbo1970
Hall of Fame
I do agree that having a racket that feels right does matter and I am probably going to regret saying this (I know some on here can be a bit spiteful) but I do wonder if some people think they are better players than they actually are. There seems like there's a lot of equipment blame that goes on. The wrong strings, the wrong tension, the wrong balance, the wrong flex. Unless you play exactly the same every time you play. If I miss a sitter of a volley at the net, is that because my grip feels wrong or I haven't got the right HL balance for my style of play, no, it's because I didn't concentrate and hit the shot like a twat.
There seems to be so many threads with people searching for new rackets who must have only got a new one last year. Kudos to the players who stick with older rackets and just focus on improving technique.
I think my point is that too many people blame something about their racket rather than taking a look at the person using it.
I am on a low budget and managed to get an Exo3 93 at a really good price. It felt really comfortable to use and the head size felt very forgiving, but it was a bit heavy. So I worked out and got my arm and body stronger. I knew the racket was good, but I wasn't, so I tried to fix that.
I think a lot of people on here have very good rackets but perhaps need to make adjustments to themselves and the way they play otherwise they are never going to settle on a racket and enjoy the beautiful game.
There seems to be so many threads with people searching for new rackets who must have only got a new one last year. Kudos to the players who stick with older rackets and just focus on improving technique.
I think my point is that too many people blame something about their racket rather than taking a look at the person using it.
I am on a low budget and managed to get an Exo3 93 at a really good price. It felt really comfortable to use and the head size felt very forgiving, but it was a bit heavy. So I worked out and got my arm and body stronger. I knew the racket was good, but I wasn't, so I tried to fix that.
I think a lot of people on here have very good rackets but perhaps need to make adjustments to themselves and the way they play otherwise they are never going to settle on a racket and enjoy the beautiful game.
MikeHitsHard93
Hall of Fame
^completely agree. I've been through loads of rackets, and I currently have SIX different frames in my bag. SIX! It's a hinders nice to my game, and I have no doubt that it would be to most people (unless they're one of those athletic pick-up-and-go types). Using a different frame every time your on the court doesn't help you develop good technique or timing.
Straight-Arm-FH
Banned
Rackets don't matter if you accept certain level of your play. For example if you have sound techniques, most rackets will work for you even a 60si woodie. If you play only recreationally that is. But when it comes to competition play, one would probably want to get every little bit of edge one can to one up his/her opp. Same reason Nadal and Djok don't use 60 si woodies.
