Yonex EZONE 100 Racquet Review

Groundstrokes - Score: 85

Despite their varying game styles, all four playtesters found success with the Yonex EZONE 100 from the baseline. With her current racquet of choice being the previous EZONE 100, Brittany was beyond excited for this update. She said, "I was lucky enough to be the very first playtester in our office to hit with the prototype. I felt right at home with this racquet from the first strike. Yonex didn't change too much in terms of specs, and the feel falls somewhere between the DR and 2017 models. What I have liked about the EZONE 100 in the past continues with this update. There is controllable power, and I like how I can turn up the RPMs when needed. I love the easy depth and the ability to generate plenty of spin. This let me hit deep groundstrokes that were dropping inside the baseline, and sometimes I was even surprising myself with balls dropping in that I thought would land deep. This model complements my aggressive baseline game style very well."

"The EZONE 100 racquets have always been easy to pick up and use," Tiffani continued. "They have good all-around playability, and if you're familiar with the line, this newest version will be an easy adjustment. The same controllable power is there, the only difference is an update to the feel. The newest EZONE 100 has a feel somewhere between the DR model and the outgoing EZONE 300. Even though the stiffness rating is close to 70, the racquet has a softer, plusher response that I enjoyed. This racquet was really spin friendly, and I loved how I could hit with depth with a relaxed stroke. It took me a few hitting sessions to get my slice to sit lower. Initially, they were launching too high. Overall, I loved grooving from the baseline with this racquet, but I actually preferred the EZONE 98. It doesn't feel much heavier when you're playing, so it's worth demoing them together."

Jason has tested multiple generations of the EZONE line, and even used one as his racquet of choice for a while. He said, "The EZONE 100 racquets have always been easy to swing and use. This was no different. I found it to be a user-friendly racquet in many aspects. The access to power and spin was great for its weight class, and that really hasn't changed from the previous version to this one. What has changed is the feel. This update has a plusher feel at contact, which reminds me of the DR model from a few years ago. It also feels slightly more stable with off-center shots than the previous version."

It is safe to say that Mark was also impressed with this update. He said, "Since the release of the EZONE Ai 100, I have been a fan of every update, and the baseline is where I like playing with them the most. Although you cannot get around the fact that the new Yonex EZONE 100 weighs no more than 11.2 ounces strung, Yonex has done a great job at making a lighter player's frame feel about as stable as I would imagine possible. Within 10 minutes of baseline play I was already aiming at smaller targets, and I rarely felt like the new Yonex EZONE 100 was undernourished in terms of stability while trading groundstrokes. As expected, it was easy to develop topspin, and there was no negative trade-off with regards to keeping my slice backhand low over the net, which is sometimes the case for me with open-patterned frames."

Volleys - Score: 83

Our playtesters were in complete agreement about the performance of the Yonex EZONE 100 at net. Tiffani summed it up nicely, saying, "The EZONE 100's generous sweetspot and quick feel were a winning combination at net. This racquet felt stable for its weight, and it produced some good depth. Mis-hits weren't too jarring on the arm either."

"I probably end more points at net than I do from the baseline, so I try to make the most of any opportunity I get inside the service line," Mark added. "If I am volleying with a heavy racquet, like the Yonex VCORE Pro 97 (330), I am concerned about maneuverability, but with a 300-gram frame I’m more concerned with stability. That said, I got the same level of surprise and satisfaction at net as I did from the baseline when wielding Yonex's latest evolution to the EZONE 100. Admittedly, many of my groundstrokes sit up nicely for someone like Troy to rob time from me and turn up the heat on a passing shot, but at net with the new EZONE 100, I was able to take some of that time back with some hard-to-return volleys."

Brittany was a big fan of her volleys up at net. She said, "This racquet felt stable — maybe even more stable than the previous iteration. I had complete confidence in my volleys and punching the ball away. I had enough feel to execute some great pickup volleys that were aimed at my feet. I also had enough control when lunging for a passing shot to get the volley back in play and give myself a chance to stay in the point."

Even though Jason spends most of his time on the baseline, he has been working on ending points at net. The EZONE 100 was a confidence builder. He said, "For a racquet that's just over 11 ounces strung, it felt fairly stable at net considering I don't usually hit the cleanest volleys, and it was maneuverable enough to easily snap my wrist on overheads. I felt well connected to my shots thanks to the responsive feedback, and I was more successful executing drop volleys."

Serves - Score: 84

With the Yonex EZONE 100 in their hands, our playtesters felt that they had a wide range of options for starting the point. While the easiest shot for Mark to hit with the latest EZONE 100 (300) was the volley, his favorite shot was the serve. He explained, "Typically, it is easier for me to serve with heavier racquets since the weight of the racquet does much of the work for me, but I was surprised that my serve was just as effective with this lighter player's frame. My guess is that the newer EZONE 100's balance of around four-points head light and low-320 swingweight helped maximize how much stability you can derive from an 11.2-ounce racquet."

Jason found serving with this racquet to be a breeze. He said, "The open string pattern really helped me generate spin on my slice serves, and there was enough pop to get some short returns. Could I have used a little more pop? Yes, but the combination of the power, spin and control made this an effective racquet on serve."

It’s always a plus any time Tiffani can get some free power out of her racquet. The Yonex EZONE 100 definitely helped her out in that area. She said, "Since I've been playtesting some lower-powered racquets lately, I really appreciated the pop the EZONE 100 gave my serves. I'm always fiddling with my stroke to try to eke out any extra power I can, and this racquet seemed to deliver some extra pace. I'm still not hitting aces, but I'll take any boost I can get."

Serving was tough for Brittany. She described, "I didn't connect with it at the beginning of the playtest. At times, I was serving solidly and consistently with no issues. However, there were times I was dropping a ton of serves into the net. Now, this could definitely be a 'me' problem. I am not getting as many serve reps in right now, but it messed with my confidence. A lot of times I was just slicing my first serve into the body to get it in. I could definitely generate pace and tap into plenty of spin on second serves, but I will need to continue to hit with this racquet to fully adjust. Nonetheless, I might just be overthinking things since I have such high expectations for the racquet."

Returns - Score: 83

The Yonex EZONE 100 was easy for our playtesters to get into position, but some were looking for a little more stability. Jason found both positives and negatives when it came to returning. He said, "This racquet was whippy enough that I could take a big cut at a serve without being late on the ball, and the spin I could generate would help keep the ball in play. It did get pushed around slightly against bigger servers, so that'd be one knock on it here."

Mark agreed with Jason. He added, "Overall, the new Yonex EZONE 100 worked very well for my return. However, once ball pace and spin became excessive, I was reminded that the Yonex EZONE 100 only weighs 11.2 ounces."

After a small adjustment, Tiffani was able to get into a good groove on her returns. She said, "I had to be sure I didn't get too overzealous with my returns since this racquet offered such good depth, but once I settled in I was returning confidently. The racquet came around quickly and felt pretty stable, and I had enough control to put my returns where I wanted. This let me begin constructing a point from the first shot."

Just like the previous few generations, Brittany's favorite shot to hit with this racquet was the return. She said, "This is an important aspect of my game, and if I am not clicking with a racquet here, I tend to struggle with the rest of my strokes. The EZONE 100 did a great job of being stable, but I was still able to get it around my body and into position to hit a return. I felt in control of the return and never felt like I was spraying shots. My returns were landing deep in the court, and I could start the point off on the offensive."

Overall - Score: 84