I don’t know about you but when I watch Wimbledon I like to see which racquet the pros are using.
This seemingly insignificant habit is an important one, and I wouldn’t be surprised if almost all tennis players did this from time. Racquet manufacturers realised this a long time ago; why else would they pay many millions of dollars to a player just to use their brand?
Although the top players are a powerful advertisement, there are other factors that also influence the choice of the club player when choosing a new racquet.
The “Try This One” factor is probably the most important way someone can make the right choice. Borrowing a demo racquet from your local sports store, or from a friend, is a quick way to compare a few racquets. I imagine that this is why the oversize tennis racquet has become the as popular as it is. Not that many pros use them, but for an average person they just feel great to try out.
Most people don’t have the time or know how to develop their technique properly, and some just aren’t interested. Racquet manufacturers realised this a long time ago and started developing features to make a racket more forgiving. A larger head racquet not only makes your shots more powerful, but also doesn’t jar as much, thus protecting against injuries to the wrist and elbow.
Is there a limit to how big you can make an oversize tennis racquet?
The official tennis authorities tried to ban the use of the larger oversize heads (115 sq inches), but it became so popular that it is no longer regarded as a “freak” racquet. There are racquets available above 130 sq. inches which are colossal, but I’m sure they could get it even larger than that if they would be practical to play with.
What is the best oversize racquet of all time?
In my opinion it is the Prince Oversize Graphite. It made a fantastic impact and became very famous. Andre Agassi started his career with this racquet and when he switched racquet sponsors they replicated the design of the Prince OS as best they could. You can spot the Graphite a mile off because it has a double bridge – an extra beam in the triangular hole.
Its successor the “Graphite 2″ was also a very successful racquet, but these are difficult to get hold of brand new. Some say that this is even better than the original. I was almost the perfect design for a racquet. It set new standards for stiff frames for good players, and the technology used is still utilised to this day. The better players were able to get more accuracy with the stiff racquets because there was no deflection of the racquet. It didn’t bend and twist on impact, and so if you hit the ball in the centre it went exactly where you wanted it to go.
Other companies followed in the footsteps of Prince; the most notable was the Head Oversize range called the “Radical”. That one was incredibly accurate just like the Prince OS. This was no coincidence, as both racquets were used by Andre Agassi. I’m sure head were trying to appease Andre who loved the amazing feel of the Prince original.
Tim Brennan
Oversize Tennis Racquet Enthusiast
http://oversizetennisracquet.com/