Which have the better grip on AstroTurf?

[NRMM]

I play most of my matches on AstroTurf which isn’t very thick and has just some sand over.. when it’s humid it tends to be slippery.. which one of these tennis shoes would you recommend for better grip and speed? Currently I’m playing with grass Nike shoes and it’s fine although I’ve read that grass shoes shouldn’t be used on AstroTurf...

Babolat Jet Clay

Nike Air Zoom Ultra React Clay

On HC I actually wear the last ones but for HC

Thanks guys!

 

[J011yroger]

I wear grass shoes. Vastly better than hard or clay.

J

 

[NRMM]

I wear grass shoes. Vastly better than hard or clay.

J

oh, ok.. how do you feel about this reading https://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/index.php?threads/astroturf-nike.601022/ , specially what @Bobby Jr is saying which sounds very robust ?

 

[J011yroger]

oh, ok.. how do you feel about this reading https://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/index.php?threads/astroturf-nike.601022/ , specially what @Bobby Jr is saying which sounds very robust ?

I think that short of an omni shoe grass is the best. I hated hard court vapors on it. Very slippery.

J

 

[NRMM]

I think that short of an omni shoe grass is the best. I hated hard court vapors on it. Very slippery.

J

I understand but the question is more clay vs grass shoes on astro and I understood that clay ones were better for grip and speed?

 

[bigdaddyps]

Does Astro Turf actually still exist. I didn’t think so.

 

[NRMM]

this is it, now a little bit more worn out and a tad sandy

 

[imajica77]

They make shoes for this. They are called omni shoes. TWE carries these type of shoes. If you don't go that route I would stay with the grass courts shoes.

 

[PBODY99]

I used grass shoes on Astro Turf. I found nothing better.

 

[NRMM]

I used grass shoes on Astro Turf. I found nothing better.

So do you use all court, clay, omni..?

 

[PBODY99]

@NRMM
This Joma shoe

 

[rowdy1]

Hi I'm interested in what shoes people use on Synthetic Grass too.
I'm guessing the amount of sand might make a difference. The quantity of sand varies quite a lot on the courts I play on.
I only have the choice where I am between hard court and clay court shoes. Which would you pick?

 

[Crozzer95]

Depending on where I play my league matches, if I play somewhere I know they don’t have much sand on the courts I’ll wear my grass shoes, if I play at my own club with a fair bit of sand I’ll wear my Clay Vapor X, my grass shoes are fila axilus enrgized

 

[rowdy1]

Right. The chap at the tennis shop recommended a clay shoe.
Is there a problem wearing your clay shoe on the synthetic with less sand? Will it just wear the sole out quicker or something?

 

[Chas]

70% of club courts in Scotland are artificial grass - most council /public courts are are painted tarmac.

Artificial grass comes in 2 varieties - "sand dressed" and "sand filled".

The latter, which the OP posted a photo of, are around 13-15mm high polypropylene "blades" which are filled with sand, or a quartz equivalent, to a sufficient depth so that effectively you are playing on a thin film of sand over the base mat.

Theses are inherently slippy, a bit like a clay court. In fact, you can also get artificial clay courts, which are effectively the same 13mm pile base mat, but filled with a fine granual, red clay like material.

To grip on these courts you really need a shoe with a ripple ( parallel ridges) pattern - as found on most clay court shoes, or a stipple ( mini spikes) pattern - as used on hockey shoes, "astro" football trainers etc.


The "sand dressed" artificial grass , eg Tigerturf, Lano, etc. which is the more recent type, is a slightly shorter, 10-13mm pile, with about 5-7mm of sand. The sand is primarily a ballast, and you are playing on the plastic spikes. These play & grip much more like a lower bouncing & faster hard court.

Although the ripple style tread works best on these, most players do just fine with the normal block type tread pattern on most current tennis shoes .

I hope that helps.



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[Crozzer95]

Right. The chap at the tennis shop recommended a clay shoe.
Is there a problem wearing your clay shoe on the synthetic with less sand? Will it just wear the sole out quicker or something?

Yeah it will wear it down

 

[imajica77]

Have you tried an Omni shoe. It is designed for these type of courts.

 

[rowdy1]

No never tried an Omni shoe. Just not a serious option availability wise here in Australia.
Most here seem to use either a hard court or clay sole.
I'm just going to go with whatever fits me best and see how it goes. For me fit is usually difficult to get right. But if I have the option I'll probably try a clay sole.

 

[NRMM]

That’s a

70% of club courts in Scotland are artificial grass - most council /public courts are are painted tarmac.

Artificial grass comes in 2 varieties - "sand dressed" and "sand filled".

The latter, which the OP posted a photo of, are around 13-15mm high polypropylene "blades" which are filled with sand, or a quartz equivalent, to a sufficient depth so that effectively you are playing on a thin film of sand over the base mat.

Theses are inherently slippy, a bit like a clay court. In fact, you can also get artificial clay courts, which are effectively the same 13mm pile base mat, but filled with a fine granual, red clay like material.

To grip on these courts you really need a shoe with a ripple ( parallel ridges) pattern - as found on most clay court shoes, or a stipple ( mini spikes) pattern - as used on hockey shoes, "astro" football trainers etc.


The "sand dressed" artificial grass , eg Tigerturf, Lano, etc. which is the more recent type, is a slightly shorter, 10-13mm pile, with about 5-7mm of sand. The sand is primarily a ballast, and you are playing on the plastic spikes. These play & grip much more like a lower bouncing & faster hard court.

Although the ripple style tread works best on these, most players do just fine with the normal block type tread pattern on most current tennis shoes .

I hope that helps.



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That’s a fantastic description, very helpful, thanks! I actually injured my shin splints a few weeks ago on one of the courts I added above. With just a tiny bit of moist it’s just terrible for me... and I was wearing my grass Nike 9.5 ... of course it doesn’t help that I play double handed backhand and forehand which means that I need to put more effort into reaching with the proper timing when returning serves example.

So anyway.. are you saying that you’d recommend clay tennis shoes for these courts, which could then also be used on more sand dressed courts @Chas Whilst recovering from the injury I’m just wondering whether continuing using grass shoes or just get a better alternative....

 

[ARaj]

I play the following:

- Painted tarmac courts (find them really slippery if its rained in the last few days) where I use Nike Vapor hard court shoes.
- Synthetic grass/astro courts one club where its quite sandy and one where its more like a football astro surface. I use the hard court soles on them and they seem fine, my shoes all have about 250k on them and are still in perfectly good shape with almost no wear on the soles. However, I will note that when i tried the Cage 2 and Cage 3 shoes, they have a different hard court sole to the vapors and i really struggled with grip.

 

[Sardines]

I had to play on artificial grass (astro turf) in the last year. I tried 3 shoes, the Nike Vapor X grass, Nike Zoom Zero, and the Slazenger 1881 grass. The Zoom Zero is an all court shoe but the design works well with turf, better than any omni-court shoes I've tried.
My super cheap pair of Slazenger 1881 grass court shoes I'd left in my tennis travel bag, performed very well. Grip was excellent and had good support/stability, with a good snug cushioned fit. Arch support and ventilation are good too! The only neutral comment is the grip was too good to slide much. It does have a thick mid and a non-removable insole, and the arch support is zero. Still, I can't complain about this shoe for under $40!
The Vapor X grass is slightly lighter than the Slazenger, has the same nipple sole and like most if not all grass court shoes, are designed for Wimbledon's white majority color scheme. After playing between the 1881 and VaporX, I find the VaporX gives a better low to the ground feel, with a thinner mid. Arch support is low but one can replace the insole with something better or orthotics.
The non-grass design of Nike Air Zoom Zero's elliptical sole shape has very decent grip on the forefoot, thanks to its outsole design in the front, and allows good sliding as I can easily shift weight to the back foot. The softer upper does stretch out a bit and the lacing doesn't cinch as well. Also the top lace loops is pretty forward, so the shoe doesn't lace up snug, but the sock liner does give it a bit of that secure 'feel'. The air zoom mid sole does take away quite a bit of sensation of 'feel' of the ground.

 

[NRMM]

Interesting. I'd be keen to hear about your experiences on clay tennis shoes as opposed to grass/omni as one would argue that these would deliver the most stability and support, specially on sand filled astro courts, as described by @Chas , - these courts have been the most challenging to me. If clay tennis shoes because of their reinforced lateral around the whole shoe I was wondering if these will definitely be better for people like me who are pron to just slip and fall *sigh* to date grass tennis have been my choice but they last a few months before I start noticing the mini spikes gone (mostly on the front right/left hand sides)....

 

[jmacdaununder2]

On second gen artificial grass/'Modgrass' or 'Classic Clay' courts with not much sand most hard court soles are okay, especially if you like to slide; with more sand, up to a moderate plus level, I wear Yonex clay courts, as the round 'nubs' still grip as they wear down, unlike say the herringbone pattern on Nike clay courts; with heavy ball bearing like sand that sits on top of an old compressed court, Dunlop Volleys still grip, if your feet and ankles can stand them.

 

[Sardines]

Interesting. I'd be keen to hear about your experiences on clay tennis shoes as opposed to grass/omni as one would argue that these would deliver the most stability and support, specially on sand filled astro courts, as described by @Chas , - these courts have been the most challenging to me. If clay tennis shoes because of their reinforced lateral around the whole shoe I was wondering if these will definitely be better for people like me who are pron to just slip and fall *sigh* to date grass tennis have been my choice but they last a few months before I start noticing the mini spikes gone (mostly on the front right/left hand sides)....

Unfortunately I can't help you there. I am a believer in specialized shoes for each surface. I play on real grass bi monthly, when the courts are available, but astro is only when I travel to Oceania/Asia/UK.
As for shoe support, other than the outsole, clay court shoes tend to be the same as their all/hard/grass court counterparts. If you are looking for more ankle support, perhaps a shoe with a higher instep/ankle collar will help. Some shoes, like the Asics series, have lower sidewalls than say the Nike ZC3 or your Vapor 9.5.

 

[NRMM]

Unfortunately I can't help you there. I am a believer in specialized shoes for each surface. I play on real grass bi monthly, when the courts are available, but astro is only when I travel to Oceania/Asia/UK.
As for shoe support, other than the outsole, clay court shoes tend to be the same as their all/hard/grass court counterparts. If you are looking for more ankle support, perhaps a shoe with a higher instep/ankle collar will help. Some shoes, like the Asics series, have lower sidewalls than say the Nike ZC3 or your Vapor 9.5.

I understand - for me it really seems like the outsole.. So what do use for artificial grass?

 

[Sardines]

I like grass court shoes but obviously there are other considerations. Newer grass court shoes usually pop up just around May/June. For someone like you, who has to play on them all year round, it's a problem. Clay court shoes are easier to find. Perhaps try something like the Air Zoom Zero, which has nub like outsole in the forefoot and a smoother rear area for sliding. That does take a bit of getting used to.

 

[NRMM]

Guys - which ones would you consider to have better grip on these astroturf? Again I play double handed both hands so I want to make sure I have the best support, stability when moving fast to get the best timing and positioning possible:

- Nike Air Zoom Zero
- Nike Air Zoom Vapor X Grass
- Wilson Amplifeel 2.0 Clay (I very much fancy these shoes but prefer a good choice over aesthetics.. )

 

[rjp1977]

I have the same issue with artificial grass. I seem to slip over a lot. I currently use Nike Air Zoom Resistance. I prefer Nike as they come up a little wider than other brands so that fits me better. I'm interested in the omni sole's so I'll think I'll give these a go. I'm looking at some Asics models. Does anyone know how they compare with Nike with regard to width? I know that adidas seem to be a bit narrower.

 

[Joselete]

Hi Lads, I'm looking for feedback, how did you get on with the shoes playing on artificial grass with sand on it? There are alot of sand on the courts that I play and its always really humid here in ireland, so I find myself struggling with grip all the time.

 

[NRMM]

right - I actually tried a few things as alternative to grass shoes as well as omni shoes ; I think I found it: nike air zoom zero all court.

 

[Joselete]

my nike cage (indoor court) have no grip at all on my local club, with artificial grass and sand, its like walking on ice. I'll try a clay shoes next (that's what most people use in my club and I dont see anyone complaining) so I'll give that a go.

 

[Marktennisplayer]

I wear grass shoes. Vastly better than hard or clay.

J

Have you tried clay shoes on it? And do the grass shoes play well on wet astroturf courts

 

[Marktennisplayer]

my nike cage (indoor court) have no grip at all on my local club, with artificial grass and sand, its like walking on ice. I'll try a clay shoes next (that's what most people use in my club and I dont see anyone complaining) so I'll give that a go.

Yes, I play with clay shoes too. How have you found it?

 

[Marktennisplayer]

right - I actually tried a few things as alternative to grass shoes as well as omni shoes ; I think I found it: nike air zoom zero all court.

Have you tried clay shoes on the astroturf?

 

[Marktennisplayer]

I have the same issue with artificial grass. I seem to slip over a lot. I currently use Nike Air Zoom Resistance. I prefer Nike as they come up a little wider than other brands so that fits me better. I'm interested in the omni sole's so I'll think I'll give these a go. I'm looking at some Asics models. Does anyone know how they compare with Nike with regard to width? I know that adidas seem to be a bit narrower.

Asics are very narrow

 

[J011yroger]

Have you tried clay shoes on it? And do the grass shoes play well on wet astroturf courts

Grass shoes are the best, clay second, hard third.

J

 

[Marktennisplayer]

Grass shoes are the best, clay second, hard third.

J

Thank you