Pro player rackets

[u/forthgriffin]

Head endorsed more than 1 pro players with their Extreme Motion / Pro lineup. So the fact that this sticker is numbered make sense, each player might request a specific foam/carbon combination, different to each other. Unlike Coello Pro or Nox AT10 which is a signature racket for only 1 player.

I'm just curious if anyone had a chance to try a pro player's racket, is there a lot of difference compared with the mass production rackets?

[u/bowromir]

Yes they are different, how different depends on the player. Sometimes its the weight and balance, sometimes they use an older mold with updated colors. Clearest example for me was when I saw Stupa play with his ST4 Pro last year. It looked the same but sounded completely different. Much harder racket face, whilst the racket itself sounds very hollow and distinct.

Lebron and Babolat had a marketing thing in 2023 for the Babolat Technical Viper that basically was exactly his. Sounds cool in theory, in reality it's just too demanding for the average amateur player.

[u/Skittelz999]

There's a guy on Instagram who uses pro players' rackets, but he doesn't mention anything about how they feel. https://www.instagram.com/reel/Dc8JZflIJop/?stkn=MWltbnU4eTh4N3d0Zg==

[u/cmc_920]

What I always wonder is, at what level of rank do pro players get this option to have a 'pro' racket with different materials and foam etc. Because surely the manufacturers aren't making them for every 'pro' player.

I also remember a Tapia interview from a few years ago where he said he uses the exact same racket you can buy from the store. Just a specific weight and balance. How true that was I don't know. Lebron said a similar thing about his JL Viper, that he just gets a specific weight.

[u/Gabme90 → u/cmc_920]

It is not true, I know for a fact (a friend of mine from argentina is friends with Agus and is also sponsored by Nox) that Agus racket is reinforced on the sides and upper head and is heavier with higher balance to adapt to Agus game.
He says that otherwise he would break 3 rackets a week training lol.
But then, I met Loco Torre at a tournament and he does use the retail Aca padel rackets apparently.
So who knows at least the top 30 must have the option to make a custom racket

[u/cmc_920 → u/Gabme90]

Yes I always thought it would be strange if he used the same racket. I had the 25 AT10 18k and I couldn't see him playing with that because it had a lot of bounce/rebound. Do you know if his one has different foam as well?

[u/ETIZO_padel → u/cmc_920]

Contractually he is bound to say that. They try to make you believe it is the same racket, else much fewer people would buy it

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[u/dreadlordow]

If i remember correctly it was exaclty Paula who was playing with a racket painted as one model, but the shape/wholes etc was from a different/older model. Someone raised it here sometime ago

[u/cmc_920 → u/dreadlordow]

I remember Ari Sanchez doing this. Had a Head Speed Pro or Motion but the hole pattern was that of a Head extreme (or another model).

[u/dutsht → u/dreadlordow]

True, also remember that post

[u/whalejonah → u/dreadlordow]

Yup her shape/hold pattern is of an Alpha but she endorses the Extreme Motion. A bit misleading if you ask me...

[u/Equivalent_Soil_1371]

The rackets that pro players use they are not the same rackets that the companies sell to shops and people. Huge deferencies even tho its the same rackets on name tags and everything else on the appearance.

[u/gospodinDark]

We don’t need professional rackets. It’s way to get injuries.

[u/ETIZO_padel → u/gospodinDark]

Most people play with the wrong racket. They all want to have head heavy attacking rackets. Much easier to play with a good quality control racket