As I've written in numerous posts on the blog, I'm a tennis racquet junkie (tennis racket junkie – if you prefer that spelling). I have loads of sticks in my arsenal, but today I'm testing the Wilson BLX Six.One 95 strung with Yonex Poly Tour Pro. We'll see if it works, I'll review both string and racquet on the blog soon.
You can buy pro player gear from one of our affiliates such as Tennis Warehouse Europe, Tennis Warehouse or Tennis Only and Tennisnerd will receive a small commission.
Anyway, my setup wasn't the topic of this post, but instead what's the difference between retail racquets and pro stock racquets that the top players on the ATP Tour use.
Because you should know that if you buy a racquet in your local sports store or online, you won't be getting the same racquet specifications that your favorite players play with, even though their face might be on the marketing and their signature on the tennis racquet.
Some of the racquets are more or less the same, for example Federer is said to play with close to the same characteristics as the retail Wilson Pro Staff BLX 90 although you could be sure it's at least 10 grams heavier. If you're interested in exact specifications you can join the many interesting pro player racquet discussion at the Talk Tennis forum. There you will find racquet crazy aficionados that hunt certain racquets like they were holy grails.
I found a video that explains some of the differences between a pro stock frame and a retail frame. Please see below:
A good way to identify a pro stock player racquet is to see if there is a code like TGK232 (Head) or H22 (Wilson) on the hair pin, throat, underneath the grip etc. If you manage to get a hold of a pro stock racquet they're usually worth double or more than the retail version. If they're new they're usually lighter to allow for lots of customisation like putting silicone in the handle or lead under the bumper guard.
