Andy Murray has endorsed the HEAD Radical series for a long time. But what is actually Andy Murray’s racquet?
Andy Murray’s Racquet
Andy Murray has advertised the Head Radical series for many years, sort of as the successor to André Agassi. Little do most people know that he actually plays with a 20-year-old racquet in a different string pattern, namely the legendary Head Pro Tour 630 made popular by Thomas Muster and Gustavo Kuerten. I did play with the Head Pro Tour 630 myself for a while, but wanted a 16×19 string pattern and finding a so-called pro stock racquet of Murray’s mold is close to impossible and very expensive.
You can find the product Andy endorses, like Andy Murray’s racquet at Tennis Only, Tennis Warehouse Europe and Tennis Warehouse.
But luckily my friend has one of Andy Murray’s actual racquets and here are the specs.
Specs
Here are the specs of Andy Murray’s tennis racquet:
Specifications ANDY MURRAY PT57A PRO STOCK
Head size: 95 sq. in. / 613 sq. cm.
Length: 27 in. / 68.6 cm.
Strung weight: 12.4 oz. / 353 gr.
Strung balance: 332 mm
Stiffness: 58
Grip size: L3 (4 3/8)
Grip type: Karakal PU Super Grip + Overgrip
String pattern: 16 Mains / 19 Crosses
Silicone: Yes
Lead: Yes
Pro stock code: Head PT57A
Pro stock code printed in throat: No
Pro player name printed in throat: Yes
Sticker player code in throat: Yes
The specs and pic below are from the website prostocktennis.com where you can actually buy Andy Murray’s actual racquet! Check out Andy Murray’s racquet here.
(If you’re interested in what racquets other ATP pros actually use…read this article about the tennis racquets of the ATP professionals).
And here’s a video I shot at Monte Carlo of Andy Murray playing some PT57A-inspired tennis.
Andy Murray’s Racquet – HEAD Pro Tour 630
The Head Pro Tour 630 (280 is the name of the US release of this racquet) has been hailed as one of the best racquets ever made by racquet experts/fans and is still played by quite a few players on the ATP world tour. Such as Murray, Simon, Cuevas, Haas and quite a few more. In pro stock tennis racquet lingo it’s called a PT57A.
Is the PT 630 or PT57A really as good as they say? Well, if you’re looking for an arm-friendly and great feeling racquet with an emphasis of control over power and spin – look no further. Most of the modern racquet technologies cannot really stand up to this beautiful blend of Twaron and graphite. It’s old school but still up to scratch (and in many cases beyond) with all the marketing hype of today’s current sticks.
Will it change your game immeasurably to the better? Nah, no racquet will do that. But it might save your elbow and wrist from a stiff thick-beamed Babolat or Wilson racquet and that’s worth a lot, right?
So if you have the chance to playtest a Head Pro Tour 630 or Head PT57A – do it, it might not make your game any better (practice is the best way to do that), but it sure is a nice and very comfortable ride. If you’re interested in other advice around buying a tennis racquet, check out the links and posts below.
Racquet buying guides
Here is a great racquet buying guide to get you started.
What tennis racquet should I buy?
Top tennis racquets to buy right now
The Gear of the Year 2016
Tennis racquets for juniors
Tennis racquets for kids