Why I use the Head Extreme Tour
For years I hated Head racquets. I thought they were too stiff. Pingy and tinny. They felt disconnected and hollow. And then something changed.
When Head debuted the Graphene Technology with Spiral Fibres in the Gravity line, I was firmly impressed. I deeply contemplated leaving Yonex for the Gravity MP, as racquet I still enjoy today. Honestly, the only reason I didn’t switch was lack of funds. I was a student at the time and had no money to buy two new racquets.
A pair of Head Extreme Tours sit beside a Yonex VCORE 95. Beckett Chung. TennCom Media, 2021.
What Was Wrong with the VCORE 95?
From 2018 to 2020, I truly felt that Yonex was the dominant racquet brand. No company could touch them in term off quality control, and feel offered the same solid, graphite-like feel that the Yonex’s did. This is what led my to switch to the SV95 in late 2017 before upgrading to the VCore 95 in early 2019. However, like any 95 square inch racquet, the VCore demanded a lot from me to get the performance necessary to compete. Suddenly, I found myself graduated from university, playing way less tennis and working a day job, sitting on my ass for 8 hours a day. I was getting out of shape. My footwork slow and I started shanking. My endurance worsened and I couldn’t keep up the swing speed needed to generate power.
Nothing was wrong with the Yonex. The problem was with me. Luckily, this is America (ok Canada), and I can fix any problem with consumerism.
The Shortlist
Thankfully, my full time hobby is tennis, so I have a pretty good idea of what’s available on the market. I knew I was looking for something in the 97-100 square inch range, with decent energy return and a plush, yet responsive feel. I don’t care that much about stability or spin potential, as long a the stringbed itself is medium-dense, the actual string pattern is a non-issue.
Having tried most racquets on the market, my shortlist consisted of:
Head Extreme Tour Graphene 360+
Head Gravity Pro Graphene 360+
Head Prestige Tour Graphene 360+
Head Radical Pro Graphene 360+
Yonex EZONE 98
Babolat Pure Strike Tour
Right away, I was able to write off the Prestige Tour. The feel was much buzzier and more hollow than I remembered from my last demo session.
Next on the chopping block were the Gravity Pro and Pure Strike Tour. Both of these racquets felt like they sacrificed too much maneuverability for stability. They both have a ton of weight in the hoop and big twistweights (weight at 3 and 9). While both racquets stood up to pace impecably, and encouraged me to take the ball early, I struggled to get on the offensive with both sticks. I had a hard time making the last-minute adjustments and whipping accelerations that I need to be aggressive. Mainly, flicking shots off a forehand, a must-have feature for my lazy footwork and wristy swing proved too difficult with these hefty beasts.
And then there were two, the Yonex EZONE 98 and the Head Extreme Tour. Both maneuverable, friendly 98’s that pack surprising consistency off the stringbed.
EZONE 98 vs. the Extreme Tour
The EZONE and the Extreme were neck and neck for me in almost every department. Power was pretty close, I’d say the EZONE is a bit more forgiving off centre, but the string on the Extreme is just a bit more consistent and offers a slightly lower launch angle. I felt very confident with all my shorts from the crucial loopy forehand, to the flat backhand up the line. Serve and volleys were just fine with both, but neither are crucial to my game.
I certainly think that the EZONE looks way cooler, but I made the mature decision and ignored that.
The Head’s are priced quite a bit better as well. Yonex charges a lot for their racquets, but the craftsmanship on every stick is so phenomenal that it’s definitely worth it. Head, on the other hand, have a tendency to be way off spec. As a consumer, I’d call this a draw. However, as I have solid retail connection, I could be sure to pick up a few Extreme Tour’s in a very similar spec.
Ultimately, the deciding factor was feel. I felt that the EZONE 98 was just a bit too muted when compared to the Extreme Tour. I’m not sure if VDM is to blame, but I’ve felt like the recent Yonex releases have felt too muted. They are already very soft and solid feeling. I never felt like excess vibration was an issue, however, VDM has been added to every new Yonex racquet since the 2019 VCORE Pro line. VDM just takes the dampening one step too far. It’s an unnecessary addition to an otherwise perfect racquet.
The Extreme Tour offers a wonderfully balanced felt. The stringbed is one of the most responsive on the market. The sweetspot feel is rich, with excellent dwell-time and ball-pocketing. You can feel a light harshness on off-centre hits which informs the user of deficiencies of technique and timing. This sounds bad, but I think it’s necessary. I like knowing when I’ve hit a bad shot. I like feeling why I hit a bad shot. I need to feel why I hit a bad shot if I’m going to make the adjustment for the next ball. The feel off-centre isn’t uncomfortable or painful. It’s informative and needed.
At the end of the day, I felt the the Extreme Tour gave me the best combination of maneuverability, forgiveness and connection to the ball. Now those Night editions are very tempting…
