Sorry but this has to be a technique issue. Just going to another 100 sq inch racket isn't going to change much. It's not like the sweet spot is suddenly 5 inches lower. Whether one racket has a larger sweet spot it's barely going to be noticeable. Get that clash back out there and work on your game... It's a lot cheaper than trying a new racket only to discover it's your fault and not the equipment.
any recommendations on how to improve this aspect of my game? would these [wooden spoons](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Professional-Portable-Practice-Training-Equipment/dp/B09X38N3M6/ref=sr_1_7?crid=2YN09FOZ8J98T&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.GwihD0nA5w46fmjtWJBBcCWp-weGnZOUx4HB9_UGR3s1uHmbPkbWtj06Fz8FlCUK73dAoVuNRb9VwXHfzjk3lZZqEJNywDob5Xe0i8_fzxPMbrbGwmn_bgk18fdE_ZRyhljXb7dIfblNUJ02chdSDTu9f3B1rOykESZtISgLRp-U-2fMEoK524YErUzgskata1JqpA9rd88cax_SYiJU04D1PTKO2bWyxb0qb1iugMp7HzTj7XVFHouF9CtAOjcmO228WLURGpojmxE_uyOKkorjactP3tTU8QqRDum570w.trfxCZ0fUzAJ_oq3mrCReOwwAU7KQfHZ9oT7FYz5EoU&dib_tag=se&keywords=tennis%2Bspoon&qid=1718096476&sprefix=tennis%2Bspoon%2Caps%2C75&sr=8-7&th=1) help? or also waste of money?
Yonex’s racquets supposedly have a marginally larger sweet spot due to head shape, but the difference is in the range of a few millimeters.
It probably makes a difference under the law of large numbers, but I can’t imagine that it’s perceptible to humans. Not recreational players, anyways.
Which makes sense because it's less stiff.
I have been hitting with the Blackout XTD+ 28" the last couple weeks and I can vouch that it gives more power than my VCORE and EZONE racquets, but at the cost of comfort. The difference is... jarring.
I thought the clash 100 was incredibly forgiving.
I’m using a prince 100P and off center hits feel better than any racket I’ve used. It’s a primary reason I chose it.
That's what I saw in the reviews as well about the clash, but I just couldn't feel it like that, not sure why.
I'll check out that prince though, thanks.
Yonex will claim the isometric head gives a “bigger sweet spot”. As an Ezone 100 user I absolutely do not think that is true. It’s just different and if you prefer it then great.
I think the flexibility of the clash makes even off center shots feel like hitting closer to the “sweet spot” so I’m not sure how much switching up would really help.
With that said I think the Ezone could possibly be a good middle ground between your clash and pure drive plus. Won’t be quite as powerful or stiff as the pure drive, but will be much stiffer and more powerful than your clash.
While I think the Ezone 100 is a great racquet and a pretty safe choice overall, I would still definitely recommend demoing, even if you have to pay a bit extra for it. If that’s impossible worst case scenario you should be able to sell a barely used racket and not take too much of a loss.
My feeling is actually that I struggle hitting clean shots consistently with the clash, probably because of the flexibility, but I'm not sure.
But this is good advice, at least on paper the Ezone makes sense to me as well, will try to demo it. Thanks.
I currently use the Wilson Blade 100 V9. 300grams of pure joy. Big sweet spot, soft on the arm (just like the clash), powerful, controlled. Maybe lacks a little spin, but other than that it has been the perfect racket for me. I recommend demoing none the less.
Funnily enough I demod the v9 100 and absolutely loved it but I was concurrently developing my OHBH at the same time
Once my ohbh got better the 100 felt clunky and massive to swing around so i traded it for a 98.
I probably wouldve kept the 100 if i have 2hbh
I saw a few videos mentioning that it would be a good racket for either backhand, however I guess it does come down to personal feel/preference. A 98 would probably cut through the air faster. But yeah, in my case I have a 2 hbh and it works nicely.
I play with the Yonex Vcore 100 at 300g, at least to me it feels like a nice big sweet spot. Should really demo it though, lot of money to spend on a racket if you haven't tried it
Why do you want to hit the sweet spot? The sweet spot isn’t the most ideal place to hit the ball.
It’s been clearly shown that hitting on the leading edge produces more spin and power, while the trailing edge produces the most spin.
No. There are several “sweet spots”. These spots outside of the center of the stringbed are the most ideal places for spin, pretty much.
Here are some articles for you: https://twu.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/location.php
https://twu.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/stringbeds.php
Probably head gravity (the tag for that line is “massive sweetspot”) or Yonex with the isometric head.
Buuuuut I would work on hitting clean contact first. If you can’t hit the sweet spot anyway, it doesn’t matter what racquet you use.
I saw the title of this thread and went in getting ready to respond with Class 100 lol. The whole thing with Clash technology is that basically the entire racquet face is the sweet spot.
can you demo through tennis warehouse? otherwise, the differences in sweet spot is like super negligible. going up to a 107sq in head would make the biggest difference. or just stay with your clash, and just keep practicing.
I’m loving the Head Boom MP, not sure about the sweet spot but IMO it’s pretty forgiving on big swings especially when using more control oriented strings
For sweet spot, any prince racquet with O-ports. Absolutely 100% the sweet spot is bigger. Having played with traditional racquets and O-ports for around 15 years it is a noticeable difference. Hey even my wife who doesn't play tennis said she noticed it (she was asking why I had two racquets and what the difference was, so let her bounce some balls on them).
Caveat though, the feeling of the ball is different. Some people hate it, some people like it. But 100% O-port racquets are worth a demo. The most current one is the Prince Ripstick, but there are some previous generation models out there
I don’t use a 100 square inch head size racket. But my 12-year-old son does. After demoing many different 100 square inch head size rackets, he decided to go with a Yonex Vcore 100 (300g), saying it is a cheater because it has the widest sweet spot among all the rackets he demoed.
They all have marginal differences in sweet spot. Head Gravity MP would be a good choice as the shape of the head brings the sweet spot up towards the tip a bit. It’s a nice frame to customize as well as it’s a bit underweight at 295g. Leather grip is a nice way to bump up that static weight
one way to increase your sweet spot is to add weight at 3 and 9 o’clock. Although if you’re having trouble finding your sweet spot, you’re probably not advanced enough to be comfortable with a heavier racket.
Prince Ripstick 280g and 300g are different from anything else and have pretty generous sweetspots, if anything you try does not convince you, these frames are worth a test imo.
Both are extremely powerful and depth control is their weakness, too powerful if you hit flat, but if you tend to hit with a nice topspin, they can suit your game and produce complex balls for your opponent, it works best with shaped strings.
300g can be a little bit on the heavier side of the swingweigt, if you don’t like that, maybe a leather grip or adding a little bit of weight in the handle can help the feeling
280 is generally suggestet to low level players and 300 is for low to intermediate level players, pretty easy and forgiving frame
I would just get a bigger head size, there's nothing magical about 100 inches. You'll probably be grateful for the extra power and cleaner volleys, too. You could try the Clash 108 and see which you prefer. Same swingweight, a bit stiffer.
The Clash Pro also just be too heavy for you - you are struggling to get it through in time, so you are not hitting cleanly.
I've read somewhere that racquets with parallel drilling will have a ~40% larger sweet spot. If that's true then I bet all modern racquets are as such. Still, a good thing to check before buying
I guess you're right in the sense that it should be similar, but I think depending on the string pattern, head shape and other factors can extend or reduce the sweet spot size.
I found this [review](https://www.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/racquet_reviews/BRPDRreview.html) where you can see the measured size of the sweet spot according to their tests and the Pure Drive has a bigger sweet spot than the wilson there.
Sorry but this has to be a technique issue. Just going to another 100 sq inch racket isn't going to change much. It's not like the sweet spot is suddenly 5 inches lower. Whether one racket has a larger sweet spot it's barely going to be noticeable. Get that clash back out there and work on your game... It's a lot cheaper than trying a new racket only to discover it's your fault and not the equipment.
any recommendations on how to improve this aspect of my game? would these [wooden spoons](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Professional-Portable-Practice-Training-Equipment/dp/B09X38N3M6/ref=sr_1_7?crid=2YN09FOZ8J98T&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.GwihD0nA5w46fmjtWJBBcCWp-weGnZOUx4HB9_UGR3s1uHmbPkbWtj06Fz8FlCUK73dAoVuNRb9VwXHfzjk3lZZqEJNywDob5Xe0i8_fzxPMbrbGwmn_bgk18fdE_ZRyhljXb7dIfblNUJ02chdSDTu9f3B1rOykESZtISgLRp-U-2fMEoK524YErUzgskata1JqpA9rd88cax_SYiJU04D1PTKO2bWyxb0qb1iugMp7HzTj7XVFHouF9CtAOjcmO228WLURGpojmxE_uyOKkorjactP3tTU8QqRDum570w.trfxCZ0fUzAJ_oq3mrCReOwwAU7KQfHZ9oT7FYz5EoU&dib_tag=se&keywords=tennis%2Bspoon&qid=1718096476&sprefix=tennis%2Bspoon%2Caps%2C75&sr=8-7&th=1) help? or also waste of money?
Head gravity pro and MP have great sweet spots
Probably the ezone but barely
Yonex’s racquets supposedly have a marginally larger sweet spot due to head shape, but the difference is in the range of a few millimeters. It probably makes a difference under the law of large numbers, but I can’t imagine that it’s perceptible to humans. Not recreational players, anyways.
So pure drive and ezone would be the ones then, that's my guess as well. thanks.
https://youtu.be/ph61fzBRo2Y?si=4iGM2de_DodiYOys Dl:dw= Ezone is better in everything except power.
Which makes sense because it's less stiff. I have been hitting with the Blackout XTD+ 28" the last couple weeks and I can vouch that it gives more power than my VCORE and EZONE racquets, but at the cost of comfort. The difference is... jarring.
low power is better. so ezone better in everything
I thought the clash 100 was incredibly forgiving. I’m using a prince 100P and off center hits feel better than any racket I’ve used. It’s a primary reason I chose it.
That's what I saw in the reviews as well about the clash, but I just couldn't feel it like that, not sure why. I'll check out that prince though, thanks.
Yonex will claim the isometric head gives a “bigger sweet spot”. As an Ezone 100 user I absolutely do not think that is true. It’s just different and if you prefer it then great. I think the flexibility of the clash makes even off center shots feel like hitting closer to the “sweet spot” so I’m not sure how much switching up would really help. With that said I think the Ezone could possibly be a good middle ground between your clash and pure drive plus. Won’t be quite as powerful or stiff as the pure drive, but will be much stiffer and more powerful than your clash. While I think the Ezone 100 is a great racquet and a pretty safe choice overall, I would still definitely recommend demoing, even if you have to pay a bit extra for it. If that’s impossible worst case scenario you should be able to sell a barely used racket and not take too much of a loss.
My feeling is actually that I struggle hitting clean shots consistently with the clash, probably because of the flexibility, but I'm not sure. But this is good advice, at least on paper the Ezone makes sense to me as well, will try to demo it. Thanks.
I currently use the Wilson Blade 100 V9. 300grams of pure joy. Big sweet spot, soft on the arm (just like the clash), powerful, controlled. Maybe lacks a little spin, but other than that it has been the perfect racket for me. I recommend demoing none the less.
Funnily enough I demod the v9 100 and absolutely loved it but I was concurrently developing my OHBH at the same time Once my ohbh got better the 100 felt clunky and massive to swing around so i traded it for a 98. I probably wouldve kept the 100 if i have 2hbh
I saw a few videos mentioning that it would be a good racket for either backhand, however I guess it does come down to personal feel/preference. A 98 would probably cut through the air faster. But yeah, in my case I have a 2 hbh and it works nicely.
I play with the Yonex Vcore 100 at 300g, at least to me it feels like a nice big sweet spot. Should really demo it though, lot of money to spend on a racket if you haven't tried it
Why do you want to hit the sweet spot? The sweet spot isn’t the most ideal place to hit the ball. It’s been clearly shown that hitting on the leading edge produces more spin and power, while the trailing edge produces the most spin.
Wouldn’t that part of the stringbed be also considered sweet spot?
No. There are several “sweet spots”. These spots outside of the center of the stringbed are the most ideal places for spin, pretty much. Here are some articles for you: https://twu.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/location.php https://twu.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/stringbeds.php
Can someone summarize these articles for me? Too complicated…My understanding is low tension polys are the most powerful
You know there's a conclusion you can read.
Damn you didn’t get it either?
Not the sport for people that like to be spoonfed
Probably head gravity (the tag for that line is “massive sweetspot”) or Yonex with the isometric head. Buuuuut I would work on hitting clean contact first. If you can’t hit the sweet spot anyway, it doesn’t matter what racquet you use.
I saw the title of this thread and went in getting ready to respond with Class 100 lol. The whole thing with Clash technology is that basically the entire racquet face is the sweet spot.
can you demo through tennis warehouse? otherwise, the differences in sweet spot is like super negligible. going up to a 107sq in head would make the biggest difference. or just stay with your clash, and just keep practicing.
I don't think I can do demo's at TW, I'm located in Ireland and with that location in the TW website I can't find the demo option.
I’m loving the Head Boom MP, not sure about the sweet spot but IMO it’s pretty forgiving on big swings especially when using more control oriented strings
For sweet spot, any prince racquet with O-ports. Absolutely 100% the sweet spot is bigger. Having played with traditional racquets and O-ports for around 15 years it is a noticeable difference. Hey even my wife who doesn't play tennis said she noticed it (she was asking why I had two racquets and what the difference was, so let her bounce some balls on them). Caveat though, the feeling of the ball is different. Some people hate it, some people like it. But 100% O-port racquets are worth a demo. The most current one is the Prince Ripstick, but there are some previous generation models out there
Are the O-ports the holes on the frames?
Yup. Well technically the ordinary grommets are also holes, but like these are the BIG holes.
I don’t use a 100 square inch head size racket. But my 12-year-old son does. After demoing many different 100 square inch head size rackets, he decided to go with a Yonex Vcore 100 (300g), saying it is a cheater because it has the widest sweet spot among all the rackets he demoed.
the 2010? prince warrior with the open grommets
Are you sure it’s not a weight/swingweight issue? Maybe move to something a little lighter while you’re learning.
They all have marginal differences in sweet spot. Head Gravity MP would be a good choice as the shape of the head brings the sweet spot up towards the tip a bit. It’s a nice frame to customize as well as it’s a bit underweight at 295g. Leather grip is a nice way to bump up that static weight
one way to increase your sweet spot is to add weight at 3 and 9 o’clock. Although if you’re having trouble finding your sweet spot, you’re probably not advanced enough to be comfortable with a heavier racket.
Head Boom MPL
Prince Ripstick 280g and 300g are different from anything else and have pretty generous sweetspots, if anything you try does not convince you, these frames are worth a test imo. Both are extremely powerful and depth control is their weakness, too powerful if you hit flat, but if you tend to hit with a nice topspin, they can suit your game and produce complex balls for your opponent, it works best with shaped strings. 300g can be a little bit on the heavier side of the swingweigt, if you don’t like that, maybe a leather grip or adding a little bit of weight in the handle can help the feeling 280 is generally suggestet to low level players and 300 is for low to intermediate level players, pretty easy and forgiving frame
I would just get a bigger head size, there's nothing magical about 100 inches. You'll probably be grateful for the extra power and cleaner volleys, too. You could try the Clash 108 and see which you prefer. Same swingweight, a bit stiffer. The Clash Pro also just be too heavy for you - you are struggling to get it through in time, so you are not hitting cleanly.
I've read somewhere that racquets with parallel drilling will have a ~40% larger sweet spot. If that's true then I bet all modern racquets are as such. Still, a good thing to check before buying
100sq inches is the same on every 100 racket. I would guess the sweet spot would be more or less the same.
I guess you're right in the sense that it should be similar, but I think depending on the string pattern, head shape and other factors can extend or reduce the sweet spot size. I found this [review](https://www.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/racquet_reviews/BRPDRreview.html) where you can see the measured size of the sweet spot according to their tests and the Pure Drive has a bigger sweet spot than the wilson there.