Head Graphene 360 Extreme Pro Racquet Review

Groundstrokes - Score: 85

From the thick, tapered beam to the open string pattern and 331 swingweight, the Head Graphene 360 Extreme Pro was born to be a baseliner's weapon. All of our testers were able to tap into that wellspring of power and spin to play commanding tennis from the ground. As a previous user of the Extreme MP, Erik was excited to try out this heavier version. He said, "This racquet was extremely solid on my groundstrokes. I could hit tons of different heights and spins on command; it was also extremely predictable off the stringbed. My slice tended to sit up, but as a result of this, I could hit the slice with very good depth and defend well. This racquet was extremely stable thanks to the swingweight. It was also quite maneuverable, and I could generate good racquet head speed as a result. This racquet was great for my game style. I could be quite aggressive and mix in slices and volleys whenever I wanted, and I felt comfortable doing so."

In terms of specs, the Extreme Pro sat right in Chris' wheelhouse. He explained, "I loved the easy power the Graphene 360 Extreme Pro offered from the baseline. I could be confidently aggressive and attack the ball with pace and spin. Even when I was pushing inside the court, I had the confidence to stay on the gas and go after my shots. I got great spin with this racquet, and I think a lot of that came from my confidence to carry lots of racquet head speed on most shots. When pushed wide or deep, I was able to use the powerful response to hit deep shots back and neutralize the point. The Graphene 360 Extreme Pro also felt very good on slice backhands. There was a very direct response from it that had me feeling connected to my targets and willing to take chances."

Although the Extreme Pro isn't the type of racquet Michelle is usually seen using, she was surprised by how much she enjoyed this playtest. She said, "The more I played with the Graphene 360 Extreme Pro, the more I liked it. The stringbed felt so forgiving, though I did feel slightly disconnected from the ball at times. It was a fun racquet to drill and practice with because I found loads of power and a good amount of spin. I could hit deep in the court and swing fast while being rewarded. When racquets have wider string spacing I sometimes struggle with the launch angle, but that was not the case with this racquet. I could still swing flat and fast, and my shots weren't erratic. I could also add a bit more spin and arch to my mechanics, so I could really get the ball hopping and bouncing high against my opponent. The one downside I did have was that when I was in a pressure situation the racquet was almost too much for me. I tend to go for too much and hit too big at times, and I found myself overhitting in those moments. That's the biggest reason I gravitate toward a heftier racquet with a higher swingweight — to help slow my swing down and add some control rather than power. To combat this, I would simply string this racquet up a bit tighter with control-oriented strings. On the positive side, my PlaySight data for this racquet and my racquet of choice were nearly identical, and it was nice to see that I could hit deep and hard with this Extreme Pro."

Sean usually prefers hitting with low-powered racquets, but like Michelle, he was surprised by the performance of this Extreme Pro. He described, "Hitting this racquet alongside my usual assortment of low-powered racquets accentuated its easy power and spin. This quality of playability is achieved through the thicker beam and open string spacing, and it really helped the newest Extreme Pro deliver on what it's known for: being a potent 'tweener frame. I've never really considered the Extreme line my cup of tea, as I've more often considered myself a Prestige or Radical player, which is why I was surprised to see how easily I could transition to playing effective tennis with the Graphene 360 Extreme Pro. Granted, I had to slightly dial back my effort level, but I was happy to see my groundstrokes jumping off the ground and pushing my opponents deep behind the baseline. Despite its 330 swingweight, my biggest complaint was the rather 'hollow' feel at impact. I thought the feel of the Graphene Touch line of racquets was solid but muted, which left me feeling disconnected from the stringbed. I've found the Graphene 360 technology to be much more responsive but also less stable."

Volleys - Score: 84

This isn't the type of racquet that would be described as "point and shoot" or "loaded with feel." Instead, the Head Graphene 360 Extreme Pro opts for qualities like stability, maneuverability and effortless depth. That ease of use is the defining characteristic of the Extreme Pro and makes it very capable at net. Michelle found herself volleying effectively during the playtest. She said, "Considering the swingweight, I found this racquet to be fairly maneuverable up at net. I also loved it on swinging volleys. I couldn't miss, and it was a clear winner whenever I had time to swing away and go big. The racquet held up well against big hitters, too. It was fairly easy to get the ball to do what I wanted it to at net."

Chris felt dialed in at the net with the Graphene 360 Extreme Pro. "The Graphene 360 Extreme Pro felt great at net," he said. "I found a nice blend of stability, maneuverability, power and control on my volleys. There's not much more I could ask for to perform well at net. I had fun volleying with this racquet in both singles and doubles matches. I liked how fast it felt during quick, four-at-the-net doubles points, and I also had fun carving volleys with spin when I had more time."

Sean also found some success at net, but he would have liked more stability at times. He said, "One of the benefits of playing with 'tweener frames is how effortless they can make the game feel. I felt that less was more at net, and as long as I let the racquet do the work I had no issues volleying effectively. The only time I was disappointed was when the ball was hit very hard at me, and I was left wanting more stability."

Never shy to venture forward, Erik found it easy to hit deep volleys, though he struggled a little with his drop volleys. He said, "The Graphene 360 Extreme Pro was quick and responsive up at net, and it provided good feel. I found myself hitting deeper volleys with this racquet, but I could also mix in angled volleys and spin when I needed to. However, I did feel a little less connected to the ball when hitting drop volleys, and I found myself wanting to hit the ball deep rather than short."

Serves - Score: 84

If you're the type of player who likes to hit big spin serves, we've got good news for you: The Graphene 360 Extreme Pro's string spacing and head shape seem perfect for getting the ball to jump and carve at will. The struggle is just figuring out how to rein in all of that power and spin. The playtesters who found a solution were rewarded with free points, short balls and confidence. Sean felt that this confidence in his serves boosted the rest of his game. He said, "I felt I was serving at my best with the Extreme Pro. First serves had a ton of power, and my second serves were really jumping up on my opponents. I received some nice compliments from my opponents on my serve, and that was very gratifying. It's always nice to have confidence when I walk up to the line, and that usually translates to confidence from the rest of the court, so no complaints here!"

The Graphene 360 Extreme Pro's access to spin and pinpoint accuracy helped Erik find success on both his first and second serves. He said, "I really enjoyed serving with the Graphene 360 Extreme Pro. I found a good amount of control, spin and placement with this racquet. There wasn't a ton of power, but when I wanted to generate the power myself and go for a serve, it was very accurate. There was a lot of spin and control on the second serve too; I could swing out without worrying about the ball going long. My favorite serves were my slider out wide on the deuce side and my kick serve out wide on the ad side."

Chris found that adding spin was the key to accuracy and success. He said, "I served well with this racquet. The Graphene 360 Extreme Pro is pretty close in specs to my Tecnifibre TFlash 300 PS, so it felt like a very natural transition into this racquet. I was able to generate decent power, but I was most impressed with the spin and placement I found. I had a lot of success getting the ball wide, as well as swinging it into the returner's body."

Michelle, who tends to go for harder flat serves, seemed to have some issues controlling her heavy serves. She described, "This is the main area of the playtest where I struggled. I honestly think it was just the fact that I'm used to serving with a heavier racquet. As I continued trying to get dialed in with the Extreme Pro on serve, I realized the spin potential was what I needed to tap into. The kick that I could generate was pretty impressive, so I started focusing on that rather than hitting big, flat serves."

Returns - Score: 82

Returning serves seemed to be the closest thing to a real vulnerability for the Graphene 360 Extreme Pro. Most of our testers felt that there was a fine line between connecting well with a return and accidentally overhitting the ball. Michelle elaborated, "I could get myself into trouble if I was swinging too big with the Extreme Pro because it was so powerful and would launch balls when I wasn't careful. Let's just say there isn't a whole lot of built-in control with this racquet. However, if the stars aligned I could hit a huge return that probably wasn't coming back, and if it did, I got a short ball to attack. The Graphene 360 Extreme Pro is one of those racquets that is fun to just blast balls with, but it's not always the smartest shot to go for. It was pretty stable on defensive returns as well, which I appreciated, and the access to spin was ideal for cross-court angles and pulling my opponent off the court."

Conversely, Chris was the only tester who didn't have any problems with control on his returns, perhaps because the transition from his usual racquet was so minute. He boasted, "I connected with some monster returns while playtesting this racquet. I felt very tempted to swing big and be aggressive off both wings. I also had success hitting a low skidding slice return with my backhand, which forced my opponent to dig out a tough shot and either follow a weak approach to the net or get stuck in no man's land."

Sean discovered that although the Extreme Pro was maneuverable enough, it lacked the stability he was seeking on return. He said, "Racquets that aid in returning usually balance the qualities of maneuverability and stability. Maneuverability helps get the racquet into position quickly enough, while stability is necessary to handle the fastest shot in the game. Although the Extreme Pro felt plenty maneuverable, I had some difficulty controlling the ball off the stringbed."

Due to some control issues, Erik ended up relying on his trusty slice return to get the ball in play. He said, "I could be very aggressive on returns with this racquet. I could chip back first-serve returns quite deep with ease, but I found myself hitting the ball long at times when it came to topspin. I occasionally had trouble maneuvering the racquet when I was stretched out wide on returns."

Overall - Score: 85