| A tennis player's racket is like a soldier's gun. It is the | | | | index finger at its center point. If it falls towards the |
| most important piece of equipment that you take onto | | | | head, it is "head heavy". If it falls towards the grip it is |
| the court. Despite this, countless people use rackets | | | | "head light". If it stays balanced it is "neutral". |
| that are ill equipped for their level and style of play. This | | | | Why look for these qualities in a racket? First and |
| can make the process of learning tennis un-enjoyable | | | | foremost, a lighter racket will help insure that you do |
| and potentially dangerous (ie: injuries). For those who | | | | not injure your arm as you are learning proper |
| are serious about learning the game I recommended | | | | technique. Secondly, a head heavy racket moves |
| making the investment in a good racket from the very | | | | through the air with less physical effort than a head |
| first lesson. Learning to play tennis is difficult enough, | | | | light racket. This allows you to focus on developing |
| and even more so, if you are using an old racket. | | | | smoother strokes without having to "muscle" the ball |
| What qualities should you look for in your first racket? | | | | over the net with your arm. |
| Opinions differ and often depend on your body type, | | | | As you progress you may eventually switch to a head |
| but for most of my students I generally recommend a | | | | light racket because these tend to afford slightly more |
| racket that has an even or head heavy balance and is | | | | control, especially at higher swing speeds. Rackets like |
| relatively light. It is important to realize that a head | | | | these are often referred to as "player's rackets" |
| heavy racket need not be heavy; head heavy simply | | | | because many advanced players prefer the greater |
| refers to how the overall weight of the racket is | | | | amount of control they can get with them. |
| distributed. For example, if you have a 3 lb racket, but | | | | Tennis specialty shops often have a wide selection of |
| 2.8 lbs is located in the grip, that racket would be | | | | demo rackets. Many of these shops will allow you to |
| considered head light, but overall extremely heavy (for | | | | demo/borrow a racket for several days until you find |
| comparison an average adult sized racket weighs | | | | a racket that works for you. The most common brand |
| anywhere from 8-13 ounces). | | | | name rackets are Wilson, Prince, Yonex, and Dunlop. |
| The best way to determine if a racket is head heavy | | | | Rackets are an investment in your game, and can be |
| or head light is to use the "finger test". To do this first | | | | pretty expensive, so take advantage of an opportunity |
| find the center point of the racket. This is the point that | | | | to test drive a few before you decide on the best |
| is exactly half way between the two ends. The next | | | | one! |
| step is to take the racket and try to balance it on your | | | | |