Yonex VCORE Tour F (310g) Review

Groundstrokes - 82

The exceptional control and forgiving response of the Yonex VCORE Tour F 97 (310g) gave our playtesters the green light to swing big from the baseline. The 16x21 string pattern and the soft and comfortable feel on contact allowed our players to hit with power without the stresses of overhitting. Marco had nothing but positive things to report, saying, "I liked the feel this racquet had from the baseline and its significantly larger sweetspot. I was really able to take big cuts at the ball without losing control of where my shots ended up. This racquet had a great combination of spin potential and plow through, which made it feel very steady in long rallies."

Mark praised the VCORE Tour F 97 (310g) for its groundstroke performance. Finding plenty of control, he said, "I loved this racquet from all areas of the court, especially from the baseline. Because of its slightly denser pattern the ball didn't jump off the stringbed. Instead, it dwelled there for quite some time, which complemented my swing style nicely, including my backhand slice. I found ample spin off both wings, and I got the feeling that I could precisely measure where my shots were going to land. The Tour F 97 (310g) got a 9 out of 10 score from me on groundstrokes."

Although Michelle enjoyed the forgiving response of the VCORE Tour F 97 (310g), she found it didn't quite stack up against her racquet of choice. "I had an interesting playtest with this racquet," she explained. "Everyone seemed to really enjoy it, yet I struggled to get a clean response and hit a regular ball. However, I found the feel to be very forgiving. When I hit outside the sweetspot the ball still landed in the court, so I appreciated that aspect. I'm not sure if I struggled because it was lighter than what I'm used to or because of the lower swingweight, but it just wasn't gelling for my game. Unfortunately, slices really weren't a great experience for me either. I noticed this the most when I was pulled off the court and tried to hit a defensive slice. This is something I've really come to love about my Wilson Pro Staff RF97 Autograph, so the lack of slice was quite noticeable for me with the Tour F 97 (310g)."

Granville had a better overall experience with this racquet. He said, "It all came together nicely for good comfort and control on impact with this racquet. It was slightly underpowered, so I could really swing away and find good depth on my shots. I didn't find much spin, though that's typical for me. I'm looking forward to hitting this racquet with another string and tension to further refine to my game."

Volleys - 83

The playtest team raved about maneuverability, comfort and precision, all of which made the Yonex VCORE Tour F 97 (310g) one easy racquet to hit volleys with. Hitting her targets with ease was Michelle. She stated, "It felt precise and easy to use. No issues at all here. It felt maneuverable and comfortable, and I could get the ball deep into the court and put the ball exactly where I needed it to be. Point and shoot simplicity. "

Marco felt comfortable mixing up his volleys with this racquet. He said, "I found it easy to hit a variety of volleys with this racquet. I had great feel on balls that were dipping at my feet that I had to dig out and get up over the net. For the volleys I wanted to stick through the court, the balance and swingweight gave nice comfort and allowed for a firmly struck volley."

Describing this racquet's feel as "nice and maneuverable, with a soft response," Granville further explained, "It didn't have the crisp feel of some other sticks, instead it had more of a soft, plush feel. I was able to put the ball just about anywhere without any additional adjustments to my game and volley."

Mark was a fan of the control and precision this racquet offered. He said, "A low-powered surgical instrument at net, that would be my take on the VCORE Tour F 97 (310g). The combination of its mid-11 ounce strung weight, firm beam and tighter 16x21 pattern gave me the confidence at net to put a lid on most passing shot attempts."

Serves - 80

Consistency was the main topic of discussion among the playtesters when serving with the Yonex VCORE Tour F 97 (310g). The comfortable and forgiving feel was still there, but the boosted accuracy was the highlight. Adjusting to the Tour F 97 (310g) in no time, Granville said, "This racquet was so familiar to me -- I could've used it for a year and not felt any more comfortable. However, the one shortcoming (especially for this 56-year-old competitor) was that it didn't give me any extra help with power. I don't think I got any additional MPHs from this racquet."

Sharing a similar view, Michelle commented, "I felt like the power was there on my serve, but I actually never hit a bigger serve than I can with my Wilson RF97 Autograph. It was easy to consistently hit serves in the 90s, but I never felt like I could access a bigger first serve. Overall, accuracy was there, and I enjoyed picking my targets and being able to hit them with this racquet."

Mark suggested adding extra weight to the racquet to help with power on serves. He said, "Personally, I would've liked the Tour F 97 (310g) to weigh a bit more, but only for the serve aspect of the test. Overall, the weight and balance range is best for me, but I always have the same comment: I can crush serves with a heavier racquet like the Yonex VCORE Tour G 330, but I am not very effective with it from the baseline for more than hour."

Marco, however, had no issues finding power on his flat serves. He explained, "I enjoyed the power I got on serves and actually recorded my fastest serve to date on our PlaySight smart court data with the VCORE Tour F 97 (310g) at 131 MPH. I found it to be more rewarding on flatter serves since this racquet had a nice, forgiving feel. I didn't find the spin on serves to be substantial compared with other racquets out there, but for hard T and body serves, this racquet felt great."

Returns - 81

When it came to returns, one thing was clear: The playtesters felt confident keeping the ball in play. Any worries of hitting long disappeared quickly due to the level of control the VCORE Tour F 97 (310g) offered. Touching on that point was Marco, one of our biggest hitters. He said, "I enjoyed being able to swing at my returns knowing the ball wouldn't fly erratically off the stringbed. For the most part, I was in control of where the ball ended up on the other side of the net. This racquet also really absorbed the power off serves well and remained stable."

Also going for bigger returns was Granville, who said, "At 11.5 ounces there was just enough mass to get aggressive on returns. When my game really clicked, I was able to get out in front, take big swings and take the offensive by powering my way into the court. Conversely, I could feather that return deep into a corner and play the higher percentage shots."

"The Tour F 97 (310g) was nearly perfect for my style of return," said Mark. "It was heavy enough to chip effectively, yet light enough to swing through the return."

Michelle, on the other hand, needed more time to find her groove with returns. "Something about this racquet just didn't come together for me," she said. "As I mentioned before, it felt really forgiving, so even when I didn't find the sweetspot I wasn't completely punished. However, I think I was trying to swing too big and too fast. Once I dialed myself in I found just enough power to put shots away and attack second serves. My shots were just missing depth at times. The racquet was stable enough, but it definitely wasn't as stable as my Wilson Pro Staff RF97 Autograph, and I noticed some twisting on mis-hits."

Overall - 84

Technical Specifications Length 27 inches 69 centimeters Head Size 97 square inches 626 square centimeters Weight 11.5 ounces 326 grams Balance Point 12.6 inches 32 centimeters 7pts Head Light Construction 21.5mm / 21.5mm / 20.5mm Composition H.M. Graphite / Black Micro Core / Nanometric String Pattern 16 Mains / 21 Crosses

Babolat RDC Ratings Score Grade Flex Rating 66 Range: 0-100 Swing Weight 318 Range: 200-400

Scores

(Scores are determined by averaging individual play test scores)

Playtester Profiles

Granville: 5.5 all-court player currently using a Babolat Pure Drive. Granville is an aggressive player who uses an eastern forehand grip and goes continental on everything else, hits with a flat swing and a one-handed backhand.

Marco: Open level lefty aggressive baseliner with a semi-western forehand and a one-handed backhand. He currently plays with a Babolat Pure Drive Plus.

Michelle: Open level baseline player with a semi-western forehand and a two handed backhand. She currently plays with the Wilson Pro Staff RF 97 Autograph.

Mark: 5.0 lefty all-court player with a one-handed backhand. He currently plays with the Wilson Steam 99S.

Review date: April 2015. If you found this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us.

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