The first thing you notice when you pick up this racquet is that it’s light…very light. This racquet weighs in at nearly 2 ounces lighter than its big brother, the Youtek IG Speed. As I prepared to test this racquet, I was wondering if it’s too light.

 

 

 

The overall lightness takes a bit of getting used to, especially if you’re used to a heavy racquet like I am. My current racquet weighs in at over 12 ounces, so there was an adjustment period. However, the adjustment was fairly quick and I found that I was able to generate deep shots with nice spin. This has a firm feel with the stiffness rating in the middle to stiff range (66). I did find that I needed to back off of my current fast swinging style as balls were hitting the back fence for a while. There isn’t much “plough through” like you get with a heavier racquet but if your strokes are short, there’s plenty of power to get the ball where you want it to go. I did find that I could direct the ball very well with a good amount of spin. The sweetspot is small compared to the headsize and shots hit outside that spot creates some stability issues, due mostly to the lack of overall weight.

 

 

Just like groundstrokes, there is an adjustment to this fast-moving racquet during serving. Even with the low weight, I found that I could get lots of power. Spin was good but not outstanding as my kick serves were average. The 102 sq in head gave me lots of confidence that I would find a large sweetspot but it wasn’t huge and I contribute it to the lack of weight in the frame. I did have a little problem getting the ball in the court on first serves. If I backed off the swing speed some, I could consistently get the ball in on first and second serves. Return power was there and a short backswing is your friend for control.

 

 

As you can imagine, this racquet was excellent around the net. It felt like a feather in my hand and quick reaction shots were a joy. For a minute, I thought I had the hands of McEnroe since my reaction time was so good! I came back to reality as soon as I realized that it’s the racquet, not my quickness. Darn! When struck in the middle of the racquet, volleys were solid and deep but since it’s pretty stiff and powerful, you need to keep it short and sweet. Overheads were solid and as long as I hit the middle of the racquet face there were no problems. However, outside the sweetspot and the stability went down substantially.

  

This is a very light-weight racquet that provides an adequate overall blend of spin, power and control. Beginners through intermediates players will appreciate the strong points of the racquet – maneuverability, power, a firm feel and the 102 sq in size. My question at the beginning of this review about it being too light will depend on the type of player you are and what you’re looking for. If you’re a player that takes short, precise strokes, this could be a good version for you. Players looking for a light racquet with plenty of power and who can find the sweetspot pretty well will also enjoy this stick.