What was the most disappointing racket for you?

Pure Strike VS (now pure strike 97)

Should've been great but I guess all the ones I used were low SW and adding weight just took away the maneuverability.
Plus it had a low RA but that stiff upper hoop completely took that away.

Sad
 
26 VC98. The racquet that control forgot. Feels like it was designed by AI without player input. Exceptionally poor control unless you are brushing up with spin on your strokes which is frustrating because it’s more club-like than whippy. I guess I’m at the stage where when I swing 100% I don’t want or need the racquet to juice it up to 130%. I can see extreme topspin hitters and females looking for a boost of power added to their strokes gelling with this but it’s pretty niche as there are many spin/power 98’s that afford far better accuracy.
 
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Loving all the Yonex on the list

Mine is the 2022 VCore Pro 97, literally an anti-power racquet. The prettiest racquet I’ve ever owned, thin beam, was just so sexy to look at and hold.

Control on BHs and OHs was really nice. But my FH and serve were like hitting through water.
 
Probably blasphemous around these parts, but the Tecnifibre T-Fight 315 Ltd.

The grip shape always annoyed me and the 16x19 is oddly dense in the middle. Great serve and volley stick though.
 
The flat blackout Wilson python/redline/??? (whatever tf it's going to be called) 98 I got on whim just to check out the hype. It's not for me, it's definitely for a more modern dude and I'm an old man. I'm sticking with my pro staffs.
 
The reissued Slazenger Pro Braided from 2011. I wanted to like it so badly, but the 73 RA gave me wrist pain within half an hour. It was the first time a racquet caused pain like that.
 
Dunlop Max 200G - couldn't play with it at all because it lacked maneuverability.
Wilson ProStaff 4.5 95 sq. inch (endorsed by Lindsay Davenport) - too stiff; didn't like the dense string pattern.
Head Gravity S (now called the "Team") and Lite - V1 felt harsh and lacked power.
Prince Phantom V1 with the "O" ports - Very plush but seriously lacked stability.
 
ariwibowo said:
Pure Strike VS: looks great but I just could not connect with it.
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Same here. Felt great in the hand, but way too much flex in the frame.

The Yonex Percept 97D was by far the biggest disappointment for me. Maybe my frame was significantly off-spec, but honestly, it fell short in every area. The launch angle felt extremely low, making it difficult to generate any easy depth or shape on the ball. Normally, I'm the type of player who should enjoy a racquet like the 97D. I tend to prefer heavier, more traditional player's frames, but I simply never clicked with it. Not even for a single session.

Personally, I'd take an ezone 98 or a vcore 98 tour (or 95) over the 97D any day. They offer similar levels of control while providing more power, more spin, more everything. The 97D just felt average at best.

That said, I have to admit I'm secretly curious about the 97H. Maybe I’ll give that one a go sometime.
 
talynen said:
Yonex Ezone 100. Kept hearing about what a great blend of power and control it offered, and then when I tested it the thing was an unpredictable rocket launcher. VCore 100 and Extreme MP were much easier to use.
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heavyD said:
26 VC98. The racquet that control forgot. Feels like it was designed by AI without player input. Exceptionally poor control unless you are brushing up with spin on your strokes which is frustrating because it’s more club-like than whippy. I guess I’m at the stage where when I swing 100% I don’t want or need the racquet to juice it up to 130%. I can see extreme topspin hitters and females looking for a boost of power added to their strokes gelling with this but it’s pretty niche as there are many spin/power 98’s that afford far better accuracy.
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I had the exact same experience with both of these racquets.
I would love to like Yonex frames but at the end of the day, I always end up disappointed.
 
Donnay Formula Pro One Octa, one of my worst all time purchases of not just tennis racquets, but of anything in my life.

Live and learn I suppose.
 
2017 ezone 98. I got one as a backup for the dr 98 I was using at the time. I ended up selling it and buying a used dr 98. was not terrible, but felt like a step in the wrong direction.

phantom 100xr (japan). It felt really good and had a nice amount of power but the launch angle felt really high. I wish it had come in an 18x20 version.
 
Tie. Pure Strike VS and Dunlop CX200 Tour 18x20 for the same reasons.
Loved the specs and cosmetics.
Hated the feel and lack of stability.
Played around with weight and different strings but could not gel with them.

Silver lining is they helped me realize I need a racquet with higher twistweight.
 
10S-Junkie said:
Tie. Pure Strike VS and Dunlop CX200 Tour 18x20 for the same reasons.
Loved the specs and cosmetics.
Hated the feel and lack of stability.
Played around with weight and different strings but could not gel with them.

Silver lining is they helped me realize I need a racquet with higher twistweight.
Click to expand...
The prior version (2021) of the CX200 tour was workable with a reasonable amount of lead at 3/9. Started off with 8g across 3/9, setted on 4g at 3/9, 2g at 12. The 18x20 pattern was really nice, surprisingly open, and probably helped add a little SW with the extra strings vs the 16x19. The head shape made it play more like a 98 too. The latest model is too flimsy or, at best, needs too much extra weight for a club player to use. The low SW and twistweight make it feel like it's going to get pulled out of your hand and it's already at 315g. I do feel like Dunlop's grip shape is the best in the business.
 
pgh10-4 said:
The prior version (2021) of the CX200 tour was workable with a reasonable amount of lead at 3/9. Started off with 8g across 3/9, setted on 4g at 3/9, 2g at 12. The 18x20 pattern was really nice, surprisingly open, and probably helped add a little SW with the extra strings vs the 16x19. The head shape made it play more like a 98 too. The latest model is too flimsy or, at best, needs too much extra weight for a club player to use. The low SW and twistweight make it feel like it's going to get pulled out of your hand and it's already at 315g. I do feel like Dunlop's grip shape is the best in the business.
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Yeah, I found both to be too flimsy and fluttery. Adding weight at 3 an 9 helped, but then the swingweight was too high for me. Making late contact or flying balls over the back fence is not fun!
 
volkl organix 6 (hurt my arm), Sampras' 88. I like heavy but could never get that thing to feel right. Know alot more now about adding weight, but back then it just never jelled. Bab pure aero the over sized one. Even with weight it just felt flimsy. I think it was the grommets. Prince Lightning the red and white cheap one. OMG was perfect except for the flared grommets...never could get the stringbed tight enough. Steam 96. Never ever had such a low powered stick. Even with weight it was anemic.
 
- Babolat PA98 2023. The highs were high and the lows were low with this. Also this was the only racket to give me shoulder/trap pain. It has things I love, like the 16x20 pattern and its speed on defense, at net + on serve, but it was too fast on groundstrokes even when weighted to 12oz, and felt super unforgiving to me.

- Babolat Pure Strike 16x19 gen 3. This is literally the perfect racket for me on every shot….except my BH. Idk why, but I’ve never been able to hit a good BH with Pure Strikes, with or without mods. I rely on my BH too much to use one.

- Wilson Blade 98 v9 16x19. Also literally perfect on every shot for me. It just doesn’t have enough power when I need to end the point.
 
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I was a classic feel fan, played mostly with Pro Staff 6.0 and 6.1
So the POG 93 should be a no brainier. But no, hated it from the 1st shot - I have to say I tried a few Price rackets but none got my heart

Another one was Dunlop AG 200 16x19. weird balance, lacked feeling, nothing good about it
 
we should do an opposite thread, about racquets that, surprisingly, you liked when everything should point the other way
 
Ezone 98 2022 caused wrist injury leading to surgery

Speed Pro 2025 Novak Edition - Sweetspot felt smaller than my old Prestige Mid
 
Rosstour said:
Loving all the Yonex on the list

Mine is the 2022 VCore Pro 97, literally an anti-power racquet. The prettiest racquet I’ve ever owned, thin beam, was just so sexy to look at and hold.

Control on BHs and OHs was really nice. But my FH and serve were like hitting through water.
Click to expand...
Same - I borrowed one from a friend to get a hit in at our club after playing PB - it was the same as with any other Yonex frames that I’ve tried - I can’t figure out how peeps make them work.
 
Ezone 98 2025 (customized 98l version better though)

Read perfect from the specs that I got, but it had a big power drop in the lower stringbed, the head felt laggy, arc was tricky to achive and it just does not feel like a power frame.

Always try to come back to it as the PJ is such low quality that I won't get much on second market and was Rotating it in in a Session after using the VC98 2026 and the ND m99 g2 and was extremely shocked by the drop in power/launch/free depth.

Want to like it as is it's endoresed and used in some recent Version by two of the few left OHBH ATP top 100 players but it's kind of tough.
 
EZONE 98 (2025). I couldn't feel any mass behind the ball, and the ball flies way too much. I thought it might be my next racquet, but my demo experience was very disappointing.
 
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