How to choose a tennis racket

[Unoriginalname]

[ QUOTE ]
Ok!
I am now the proud owner of a Babolat Pure Drive, Roddick's Edition. It was around $250 strung. Also played with it for like 5 minutes before i bought it. It felt great!
It has all the specifications i was searching for - heavier than what the market usually advertises, 100" headsize, head-light and with a slim overgrip fits perfect in my hand.
Here's a link: http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/descpageRCBAB-BPDR.html

[/ QUOTE ]

That's a nice racquet. My friend has that one and loves it.

I have a babolat myself. Here's my baby: AeroPro Drive Cortex

[smartalecc5]

i have wilsons and love em, but ppl do fine with other rackets too. Don't be name orientated - go with what suits your game the best. Heavier frames are better for baseliners b/c they put more wiegh on the shot and lighter ones r good for double players b/c they help in making it easier to reflex volley. Os is good for weak players b/c it adds power but then it loses control. Vice versa for smaller heads.

[El Diablo]

OP,

Looks like you already got one, but a few comments for other players reading this thread.

Demo'ing rackets as many have said is the way to go.

Tennis Warehouse is great, but I prefer holabirdsports.com

http://www.holabirdsports.com/m/Tenn.../p2/100241.htm

That's a great racket for $75 (same price at TW). For an intermediate player, it's a better choice than a lot of the more expensive rackets.

[Mason Malmuth]

Hi Everyone:

I've been playing tennis for well over 40 years and over the years I have hit a lot of tennis balls. I now get almost all my stuff from Tennis Warehouse.

As has been mentioned, they also have a great deal of reading material where you can learn a great deal about what exactly goes into a tennis racket and what things like swing weight, and head heavy/head light mean, and how they affect your stroke.

Sine the OP in this thread is a beginner, he probably should get a head size of at least 100 sq inches, a weight that's under 11 ounces (and perhaps even under 10), and a balance that is roughly even between head heavy and head light. (By the way, the racket I use is much different from this.)

Best wishes,
Mason

[Unoriginalname]

[ QUOTE ]
OP,

Looks like you already got one, but a few comments for other players reading this thread.

Demo'ing rackets as many have said is the way to go.

Tennis Warehouse is great, but I prefer holabirdsports.com

http://www.holabirdsports.com/m/Tenn.../p2/100241.htm

That's a great racket for $75 (same price at TW). For an intermediate player, it's a better choice than a lot of the more expensive rackets.

[/ QUOTE ]

El D,

I reaaaaaaally don't like that racquet at all to be honest. That thing is an arm killer. It's head heavy, really stiff, and super light (8.9 oz strung!). You're just asking to wreck your elbow with that triple combo. Heavy racquets absorb more shock, and they don't require as much racquet swing speed to hit the ball with greater velocity.

[Mason Malmuth]

Hi Unoriginalname:

I'm not real familiar with this particular racket. But in general, rackets that have large heads and are a little longer, tend to have a high swing weight. To make up for this and to reduce the swing weight, the rackets are made lighter with most of the weight coming out of the handle, thus they are head heavy. (If the weight was to come out of the head, the racket will lose stability and torque if you hit the ball off center. This reduces the size of the sweet spot.) What this means, and there is much different opinion here, is that it may not be as hard on the arm as you indicate (and I just happen to know a great deal about sore elbows).

But what I do dislike about a racket like this is that they tend to be medium or high powered which produces a trampoline effect. Since I'm old-school and use a continental grip on all my strokes and swing "through the ball," this causes me problems. But for a beginner who blocks shots and doesn't yet have a good stroke, but is hitting with the now common semi-western grip, a racket like this can be just fine.

Best wishes,
Mason

[El Diablo]

Mason,

What level player are you in terms of USTA levels? 5.0?

[Mason Malmuth]

I was once a legitimate 5.5. But that was a long time ago. Due to some health/thyroid issues, I seem to have lost some of my coordination. But it is in the process of returning.

Just to give a little background, I grew up in the 1960s in Coral Gables, Fla where the best junior tennis in the nation at that time just happened to be, and as a kid, I played virtually everyday. My high school team was Florida State champions every year from 1960 through 1968, and our girls team was also state champions several times during that period. I then played for Virginia Tech from 1970 through 1973.

Also, when I was in high school, I took some tennis lessons from an Australian named Bob Mark. He was Rod Laver's double's partner in the early 1960s and is the reason why I use a continental grip on all shots. (For those who don't know what this means, I never change my grip no matter whether it is a forehand, backhand, serve, or volley. At one time almost all the best players in the world hit like this, but with today's modern rackets it limits the amount of spin you can put on the ball and thus is inferior to the semi-western grip that is now common.)

One note of interest is that during college I spent two summers teaching tennis for All American Sports which at that time was run by Nick Bollettieri. I spent most of my time with them at a camp in Alexandria, Virginia which featured Dennis Ralston full time my second summer. Even though I didn't appreciate it at the time, my best memory from the camp was meeting Arthur Ashe. As for Bollettieri, we hardly ever saw him since he spent most of his time at their Wisconsin camp, but I did spend one afternoon riding around in a car that he was driving. By the way, my opinion of him, based on how he treated us instructors, is extremely negative till this day.

My wife also happens to be a strong 5.0 player.

Best wishes,
Mason

[INSPIRON]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Ok!
I am now the proud owner of a Babolat Pure Drive, Roddick's Edition. It was around $250 strung. Also played with it for like 5 minutes before i bought it. It felt great!
It has all the specifications i was searching for - heavier than what the market usually advertises, 100" headsize, head-light and with a slim overgrip fits perfect in my hand.
Here's a link: http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/descpageRCBAB-BPDR.html

[/ QUOTE ]

That's a nice racquet. My friend has that one and loves it.

I have a babolat myself. Here's my baby: AeroPro Drive Cortex

[/ QUOTE ]

I took my racket (Babolat Pro Drive) to the court yesterday and had my tennis lesson with this one for the first time. I have to tell you that i felt a very big difference in a positive way (compared to the ones i played with - used and for rent).

Now looking at the specs of my racket (100 sq. in. / 27 in. / 11.7oz / 5pts HL / 71 Stiff / Graphite-Kevlar / Low-Medium Power / Moderate-Fast Swing) and comparing it to yours (AeroPro Drive) i see a few differences (11.3oz / 67 Stiff / High Modulus Graphite / Fast Swing).

And now the above related questions:
1. Is the lighter weight directly related to Swing speed?
2. What does Stiffness do to the performance?
3. What are the differences between the materials used in the building process?

Thanks

[INSPIRON]

[ QUOTE ]
Sin<font color="blue">c</font>e the OP in this thread is a beginner, he probably should get a head size of at least 100 sq inches, a weight that's under 11 ounces (and perhaps even under 10), and a balance that is roughly even between head heavy and head light. (By the way, the racket I use is much different from this.)

Best wishes,
Mason

[/ QUOTE ]
Thanks Mason for the general advice to a beginner. I have chosen a head size of 100 sqin (am a fast learner) but a heavier weight because i am 24, have been hitting the gym for a couple of years and a lighter racket feels like air.