Retired the Wilson PS90, upgraded to RF97A

[letplaytennis]

Yup, another Wilson PS90 to RF97 thread.

If you don't feel like reading: played with PS90, bought RF97, played with RF97, hated RF97, after forcing to play for a few days I now love the RF97.

I've been playing with the PS90 for quite some time now and absolutely love the racket. It's a tough racket that will immediately provide feedback on contact that's outside the sweet spot, but I have yet to play with a racket that has a similar feel, until now.

Ever since the RF97 (red/black) was released, I've been drooling over making the change to a bigger head size, and also because I'm a Wilson Pro Staff fan boy an I've played with Pro Staff rackets since the beginning.

Just this past week my rackets arrived and I've got about 12 hours of hitting with them and here's how it went:

Both rackets strung at 58lbs.

1st day out with the RF97 I though I've made a terrible mistake in my purchase and after about 15 minutes went back to my PS90.

2nd day out with the RF97 I realized that I can't return the racket and don't want to lose money on reselling them on **** (bought both on ****) so I forced myself to play all day. I didn't like the strings that I had strung (Volkl Cyclone Tour 17) as they felt as if I had a tambourine or a drum as a playing surface. Absolutely terrible.

3rd day out with the RF97 was getting better. I started with the 90 to warm up but quickly picked up the RF97. I noticed one big difference in the 97 vs the 90: I was hitting the balls deeper into the court! It took quite some time to adjust to the different style of racket play but once I started to figure things out, there's no looking back for me.

4th day out with the RF97 was even better. I've consistently began to get a feel for the racket and my shots became very consistent and in deep court. Never had a problem with spin either.

My serve improved a little as well.

Next up is to try a few different strings that are currently in my shopping basket:

Kirschbaum Pro Line II Rough 17
Kirschbaum Pro Line II 17
Kirschbaum Pro Line X 16 (will probably remove)
Kirschbaum Pro Line X 17
Solinco Outlast 16 (will most likely change to 17)
Volkl V-Star 17
Luxilon Big Banger Original 16
Luxilon ALU Power Rough 16L

I'm not certain about syn gut/poly mix as of yet as I do not like playing with a mid tension and have always strung my rackets 60+.

I've been doing quite a bit of reading before posting and I'm looking for a good string combination to my style of play: 1 handed backhand and a full swing forehand with both having a lot of top spin, and I break strings after about 8-10 hours of play so I'm fully expecting these to break soon.

Not the most insightful review, but I'll report back on different string setups I've tried.

 

[TennisHound]

Nice review. I had the similar experience with the RF97. A pro at the club had a brand new RF97 only it was in a 4 1/8 grip. He said they had ordered the wrong grip and asked my if I wanted it for $100. I bought it and tried it out. It was way too heavy, but I had to use it cause the pro gave me a great deal on it. So I kept using and got better and better. Sure enough, I started beating people, and some that had beaten me before. It took a month or so, but I was able to transition to it.

I just used cheap polys in mine since they broke a lot. I think Lux 4G Rough lasted pretty long, but I usually just got Sonic Pro or RPM Blast at A cademy Sports.

 

[jsm1373]

Nice review - your experience/racquet history is very similar to mine but for switching in 2015.
Would suggest adding Luxilon 4G to your list of strings to be tried.
Also suggest trying lower tensions than you normally would. Found myself really liking the low 50s whereas high 50s/low 60s felt best with the old 90.

 

[letplaytennis]

I see a lot of potential with this racket once I become accustomed to it. My shot placement and depth have steadily been improving since the switch and the control of the racket is pure joy.

I played with a RF97 that was strung at 54 with poly like my PS90, and I hated every bit of it. Every ball I hit was being launched at the fences with ridiculous top spin. I can generate my won power and top spin, hence the higher tension, and I enjoy the control of these rackets. I took my PS90 down to 57, it was still tight, but I prefer higher tension which still allows me to swing quickly.

Tomorrow I'm having both rackets restrung with Luxilon Big Banger Original 16 & Luxilon ALU Power Rough 16L, although I'm thinking that I should have gone with a 17 gauge instead of the 16 as I fear it will make it unplayable.

 

[TennisHound]

I see a lot of potential with this racket once I become accustomed to it. My shot placement and depth have steadily been improving since the switch and the control of the racket is pure joy.

I played with a RF97 that was strung at 54 with poly like my PS90, and I hated every bit of it. Every ball I hit was being launched at the fences with ridiculous top spin. I can generate my won power and top spin, hence the higher tension, and I enjoy the control of these rackets. I took my PS90 down to 57, it was still tight, but I prefer higher tension which still allows me to swing quickly.

Tomorrow I'm having both rackets restrung with Luxilon Big Banger Original 16 & Luxilon ALU Power Rough 16L, although I'm thinking that I should have gone with a 17 gauge instead of the 16 as I fear it will make it unplayable.

I wouldn't stress over the strings too much. Just throw some thick poly (or .17ga) in there, and get a hitting partner. Go out and hit for about an hour an a half 2-3x per week. That'll help you get used to the racquet even further.

 

[SpinToWin]

@Bender

 

[Bender]

@Bender

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[asifallasleep]

If you can handle the weight it's the best available racquet on the market today!!! Nothing else even comes close.

Very unique with it's high static and high swing weight with a very headlight balance. Control, power, spin, it has it all.

 

[USPTARF97]

If you can handle the weight it's the best available racquet on the market today!!! Nothing else even comes close.

Very unique with it's high static and high swing weight with a very headlight balance. Control, power, spin, it has it all.

Been playing with the racquet since it came out and tryed Gut/poly, Poly/ Syn-gut, full poly. The gut/poly hit great the first time out and the next time it was like a trampoline. Poly/syn-gut was either uncontrollable or like a board based on tension. Found that stiff poly at low tension is the ticket with this racquet. Played with Solinco Tour Bite 16l and Solinco Hyper-G 16l both at 50lbs. Hits great for a month. Switching to Luxilon Alu power so hoping to stay in the 50-52 range.