Wilson ROK Racquet Review

The Wilson ProStaff ROK is a very competitive addition to the current player racquet market. Based on such classic characteristics as a 19.5 mm constant width beam, dense string pattern in a 93 square-inch head, head-light balance and standard 27-inch length, the ROK broadens Wilson's current control-oriented racquet line-up.

And the name? Well, that's left a little to the imagination. We know in the design phase the racquet was targeted for Roger Federer, one of his nicknames on tour is "The Rock". The corporate biography might tell you the ROK is designed to help you play "ROK" solid and "ROK" your competition. In the back alleys of Chicago you might hear that coincidentally, the lead designer and playtester for this racquet is a guy named Ron Rocchi. His nick name inside Wilson HQ is "rock star" so it just seemed appropriate to name this new racquet simply "the ROK".

We playtested the Wilson ProStaff ROK for three weeks, here's what we found out.

Groundstrokes

The ROK's characteristics combine to produce a solid feeling racquet from the baseline. Chad hit the nail on the head when he said, "I like to think of the ROK as a 'confidence' racquet. It allows the player with great confidence to hit any ball without having to worry about uncontrollable variables such as unpredictable power or instability."

Groundstroke Power

In no way does the ROK pretend to be a power racquet. Its thin beam and flexible nature steer the ROK towards the control end of the spectrum.

Mark said, "the ROK felt pretty good from the baseline until the wind started blowing. After a few minutes of hitting into the wind, I was ready to switch to a racquet with a little more pop." Granville, ever the connoisseur, did not find the lack of power in the ROK a problem, saying, "yes, there is a slight drop in power, but the result is a racquet where you can hit out and enjoy good depth. Passing shots are a real treat, as the extra millisecond of string contact (due to flex) seems like seconds. I often found myself enjoying the diminishing resonance of my racquet after a crosscourt backhand winner, like I would enjoy the lingering tannins of an excellent Bordeaux wine."

Chris, who fell victim to some of Granville's improved passing shots with the ROK, had this to say, "the ROK is a forgiving racquet, but I would have liked a bit more pop. However, there is more power to be had from this racquet. I would have liked to string it with a thinner gauge string and maybe even add some weight to the frame to juice things up a little." Don said, "I really enjoyed hitting with the ROK. Not surprisingly, power wasn't abundant but it was adequate. String and tension is very important though. We started by stringing at 55 pounds and ended up at 52 pounds with NXT 17, which seemed to work best for me. I could even go lower, given my medium-fast swing."

Groundstroke Control

All of our playtesters commented on the amount of control they felt with the ROK. Chris said, "the ROK plays solid from the baseline with eons of control on tap. I did not have to put in any extra concentration to be consistent with this racquet. Drop shots were easy to judge, and I felt I could move the ball around the court with ease. I would have loved this racquet back in my college days when I was taking a bigger cut at the ball." Don was "really impressed with the comfort and control of the ROK and I looked forward to each playtest session. The racquet just felt so good and I could direct my shots like aiming a laser." Here, Granville had nothing to say as he was still enjoying the "diminishing resonance of my racquet after a crosscourt backhand winner."

Volleys

The touch and feel our playtesters found from the baseline with the ROK also made its transition to net play. Mark said, "the ROK was very maneuverable at the net. I had no trouble getting the racquet on the ball. The stability was much better than I expected, but the low power level gave me some problems." Don offered, "My volleys were OK but I missed some power and prefer a slightly longer racquet at net. Still, the comfort and precision were strong attributes, as were touch and feel." Granville enjoyed the performance of the ROK at the net, saying, "a vollyer's dream. That soft flex of the hoop reminds me of why I like this game. Crisp at the punch and long on touch, the racquet provides a nice mix of balance and control." Chris also enjoyed the ROK while at net, commenting that he felt this was one of the racquets strong points. "I felt very comfortable playing at the net with the ROK. Even players who usually only venture to the net to shake hands with their opponents at the end of a match - I think they're called baseliners - should be able to hit solid volleys with this racquet. On one low, shoestring backhand volley in particular, I felt just like Roger Federer as I caressed the ball for a winner - except my shot was missing the Federer fan base and sponsorship deals."

Serve

Again, our playtesters praised the ROK's control on the serve, but would have liked some additional power. As for the spin potential for the ROK, the reviews were mixed.

Don starts off the commentary by offering, "this was probably the weakest element of the ROK for me. There was no free power with this racquet, forcing me to usually pick placement over power. Fortunately, this was fairly simple. Second serves required a bit more emphasis on spin to achieve the same effect as a racquet with a more open string pattern." As with Don, Mark felt the weakest part of the ROK's playability was in serving, saying "the serve may be the ROK's Achilles' heel. I struggled to generate power on my serves. Control was good, but not exceptional. My spin and kick serves were so-so." Chris felt like extra effort was required while serving with the ROK, saying, "I'm not a big server, so the fact I couldn't generate lots of power with this racquet wasn't much of a surprise. However, I found that I had to work harder on the serve using the ROK than I do with the Head Prestige Classic I've been using recently. Some extra power would have made serving with the ROK much more enjoyable."

Out of all the playtesters, Granville enjoyed serving the most with the ROK, saying, "I saw more action on my kickers down the middle and wide than with my standard racquet (HPS 6.1 95) with its 18 main strings. This was a surprise due to the ROK's dense string pattern. All I know is I was getting a better kicker wide with the ROK than with any racquet of memory. I am considering switching to the ROK as a result of this added spin potential." Chad also enjoyed the spin potential of the ROK on kick serves, adding, "I had expected the head light frame and the denser string pattern to counteract this type of serve, but I was wrong. However, my flat serves required a little more effort than usual, but nothing that couldn't be further developed over time."

Return of Serve

The control characteristics of the ROK worked well for return of serves, but again a bit more power would have been nice. Don offers, "the key to returning with the ROK is to be aggressive whenever possible. I hit some pretty good returns, especially when my opponent served and volleyed, because I could direct the ball and keep it low. When he stayed back, I had to concentrate on really hitting through the ball to avoid hitting a short sitter." Chad also had to make adjustments to his swing to produce deep returns, adding, " I had trouble with high kickers to my backhand. I didn't feel like I could generate enough power to produce an effective return, so I sliced the ball back instead, which seemed to be effective." Granville says, "once again, the luxury of hitting out with confidence paid off with the ROK. I felt like the ball had more dwell time on the racquet and that gave me added confidence to try just a bit more angle on the crosscourt, and a few inches more control down the line. Touch returns offered that 'feathery' control to drop the ball at my opponents feet or to hit a short angle." Chris added, "I really enjoyed returning with the ROK when my opponent provided me with pace. I was able to direct the ball deep into the court with plenty of control, or go for a shorter angle without fear of over hitting. However, on slower second serves, more work was required to add pace and depth."

Summary

Wilson has produced a fine player's racquet with the ROK. We would recommend the ROK for 5.0+ players that can develop their own power. Players that like to hit out may find the control they've been looking for. However, players who like their racquet to supply some of the pace may want to add some weight to the ROK, string it towards the lower end of the tension range, or both. Although all of our playtesters - with the exception of Granville - would have liked a bit more power from the ROK, they all praised its control and stability. These latter two attributes of the ROK make it a fine racquet for customization. And with a little tweaking, the ROK can appeal to a variety of playing styles.

Review date: March, 2003. If you found this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us.

All content copyright 2003 Tennis Warehouse.