This post says “How to cure racquet buying addiction“, but I must admit it is a bit click-baity for you racquetholics, because I haven’t found the cure! It’s just too much fun to try new frames and when you can sell them second hand to other racquetholics, it doesn’t hurt your wallet as much as if you were into sports cars for example.
Some might state that finding a great frame and sticking to that is the only cure, but I have tried lots and lots of great racquets and I always find myself enjoying a change and seeing what it does to my game. Changing racquets can of course be detrimental to your game, because grooving with a setup is important to be able to really feel the ball and play your best tennis.
But then there’s that thought in your head: “What if my one-handed backhand will finally be a winning shot if I go down in head-size?” “Maybe my forehand will be like Verdasco‘s if I go for a lighter, stiffer racquet and I can be able to increase the racquet head speed?” (Verdasco doesn’t use a light and stiff racquet and still hits the ball hard enough to make a dent in a tank). “Maybe, maybe a large head size will make me hit bigger serves?”
I don’t know if anything I write above resonates with you, but if it does, please comment on your experience of racquetholism. My latest bout is putting my beloved Tecnifibre Tfight 315 LTD to the side to go back and try some lighter stiffer frames. I keep going between a traditional feel with 95 sq inch head size (recent loves are Prince Textreme Tour 95 and obviously the Tecnifibre Tfights) and RA around 60 to 98 sq inch with RA around 65 (Wilson Blade 98
and Yonex Ai 98) and I’ve even ventured over to the “dark side” with my Babolat Pure Drive Originals and the Babolat Aero Pro Originals).
I don’t know where this will end and I guess the only thing I can be certain about is that it will never end. Maybe I should just keep two of each model I like so I can switch easily? This is where I’m leaning now, but for competitive play having only two racquets with the same configuration can be a bit tricky when you need to be up to date with your stringing.
Constant, constant questions and desires…but hey, let’s face it – racquet buying, changing, switching is fun and it doesn’t harm your wallet as badly as most other addictions.
What’s your story in racquetholism? Do you have any tips on what helped you battle it? Or why not just succumb to the darkness?
5 comments
Hi
Have a look into Angell’s, you’ll find old school flexy and newer firmer models in 90 to 105 sq inch head size and lots of specs to choose from. Since I discovered them I don’t have many racquets from different brands but many racquets from the same :).
Cheers, Cristi.
Hi,
I have heard so much good stuff about Angell racquets so I have to try them now. Thanks for your comment.
Cheers / Jonas
We seem to have similar tastes in racquets. I have had the Angell 100 and 95, but I ended up with the Tecnifibre LTD 16 and 18 Main, along with my Prince Textreme 95. I have some Prince prostocks on the way and others in my collection. But I can tell you this, racquetaholism is real, but once you find a frame you love, your interest in trying others dwindle, and soon you just give up and play. So there is hope!!!! The Tec LTD’s have almost cured my ‘holism. But, I will probably get another Angell at some point (they are great frames, I just sold mine because I was too busy holicing on other frames, and they just sat in my bag after a while. So, another endorsement for Angell’s being great frames that you have to put on your list to try!!!!
Thanks for your comment, Johnathan.
We do definitely have similar taste in racquets and the Tecnifibre 315 Ltds is as good as any racquet gets really, but it’s just fun to try out different specs and see what they do to your game. When I’m hitting with tournament players that are 10 years younger than me, I sometimes feel I would like a bit of extra pop to put away some balls, especially in a long match, but the kind of precision and feel you get with the LTDs is hard to beat.
I’m definitely going to test some Angells before summer. Everyone’s raving about them…
I definitely suffer from racquetolism cuz the ease of selling the racquets to people that I play with makes a lesser financial prejudice. I’ve sold most of the racquets for the same price I bought. But Im done buying cuz I think I found the one (time will tell), the 2021 vcore pro 310g. Two other meaningful choices for me are the ezone 98 and aero vs.