Tennis Fixation: A New Tennis Racquet: Part 6

May 3, 2010

A New Tennis Racquet: Part 6 - I Finally Buy A Racquet!

So, for the past several weeks, I've been in search of a new tennis racquet and I've been keeping you updated as to how that search has been going. To recap the process:

We started with A New Tennis Racquet: Part 1 - How Do You Start?, where we talked about beginning the racquet search by talking to friends, neighbors, your pro, anyone in your tennis world, about what they're playing with and why.
Then, in Part 2 - Doing Some Research, we discussed some great on-line resources explaining the latest in racquet technology and what might be important to you.
After that, in Part 3 - Picking Out Some Racquets To Try, we went through specific things to look for in a racquet and I discussed what exactly I thought I needed.
Next, in Part 4 - Acquiring Demo Racquets, we looked at different ways to get some racquets to try out.
Finally, in Part 5 - How To Demo A Tennis Racquet, we talked about going through the process of demo-ing some new racquets.

Now comes Part 6, the part where we put all of this knowledge into play and I actually buy a racquet (at last!).

After demo-ing three racquets and deciding I just wanted to buy something already, I settled on the Prince EXO3 Red 105. This was the racquet I felt the most comfortable with since it was an improvement over my old racquet but was not so radically different from that racquet that my mechanics were going to have to change much.

While my racquet selection may or may not be all that interesting to you, what you might be interested in is how I went about buying my racquet. I decided to go into my local pro shop and buy the racquet from them in person rather than ordering it on-line. I did this because (1) as I've said before, I'm lucky to have a full-service pro shop located close by to me, (2) I wanted to talk to someone one last time before I settled on this racquet, (3) this is a new model and I couldn't get a significantly better price on-line, and (4) if there is any problem with this racquet, I want to walk into the pro shop and have them help me through the return or exchange process.

You may, however, be unable to find a pro shop offering a full selection of tennis racquets. Or you may find a racquet you like but come up with a better price by buying on-line. I don't have any problem with making an on-line purchase. Just be sure you are buying from a reputable retailer and that you understand what their return and exchange policy is. I would be wary of buying a used racquet on-line since you may not get exactly what you think you're paying for. I would also question buying a racquet from someone who gives you an unbelievable deal on a racquet when no one else is offering a similar deal.

So my racquet search is ended and I've been playing with my new Prince racquet for a very short while now and am truly happy with it. Balls are going over the net that I know would never have made it with my old racquet. Some of my mis-hits are truly incredible shots. But, it wasn't like I bought the racquet and started playing with it that day. No. I had to get it strung. Which opens up a whole new can of worms - tennis strings and stringing tension. To be analyzed in depth and discussed very soon here at Tennis Fixation!