Wilson Rush Tour 5 Men's Shoe Review

The Rush Tour 5's inherently comfortable nature was universally loved by our playtesters. Troy, who prioritizes comfort from his footwear these days, was entirely grateful for the smooth ride he experienced in these shoes. He explained, "The comfort level of these Wilson Rush Tour 5s was very good overall, and I could feel the plushness all around my feet as soon as I slipped them on. The cushioning felt nice and comfortable underfoot, probably from the combination of the padded sockliner and the Super Foam material in the midsole. The uppers felt great -- plush and padded. Overall, I really had no complaints when it came to comfort. These Rush Tour 5s and the New Balance CT Rally 2s are my favorite shoes in terms of comfort."

Jason found these shoes to be extremely cushioned and enjoyable to wear, albeit after a small break-in. He noted, “The shoes felt very comfortable after an initial break-in. I think the carbon fiber plate makes the shoe fairly stiff, and it took one to two hours before the shoes started flexing better. I was very impressed with the Super Foam cushioning, though. It felt pretty supple throughout the footbed, especially under the heel."

Once he got used to the slight incline of the Rush Tour 5s, Munish thoroughly enjoyed the comfort he found underfoot. He explained, "I loved the breathability aspect of these shoes. I wore them a few times outside on days with tons of wind, and I could actually feel the breeze hit my toes. The cushioning is pretty good, and the heel is quite stacked, which was a bit of a problem at first. There was a bit of an incline that I had to get used to because it made me feel like I was falling over."

As a player with narrower feet, Chris found a great blend of comfort and security from the Rush Tour 5s. He praised the back of the shoes for making his heels feel extra comfy. He said, "I simply loved the comfortable ride these Rush Tour 5s offered. The level of cushioning was excellent. I was also a huge fan of the arch and heel support. My feet felt comfortable and supported every time I played in the Rush Tour 5s, which gave me tons of confidence to move aggressively. The ventilation did a good enough job. While my feet did get sweaty during play, I never felt overheated."

There can be a drop-off in stability and lateral support with ultra-comfortable shoes, but the Rush Tour 5s have the functional performance to back up their massive comfort. Chris was delighted with the incredible stability, which let him move comfortably and aggressively while feeling fully supported. He said, "I loved the level of support and stability I got from the Rush Tour 5s. The carbon fiber plate in the midfoot did a superb job of providing support to my heels and arches. I felt fully locked in when moving around the court, and the uppers held my feet nicely and supported me very well once the shoes were broke in."

Munish had a great experience stability-wise after getting used to the slightly raised heel. He described, "The Rush Tour 5s probably have one of the best stability-to-weight ratios I have seen. Usually, shoes that have great support tend to be quite heavy, but this wasn't the case with the Rush Tour 5s. Like I mentioned, the initial incline was a bit worrying for me in terms of stability and just feeling secure in these shoes, but I got used to it after a while and had zero issues after that."

Although Troy initially found high levels of support and lateral functionality, he did notice that the uppers started to flex and give more. He noted, "I would say overall the stability was pretty good. The support level was great initially, but I noticed the uppers softening up over about a month of wear, and it felt like there was more give and less support. The upper material would give way just a little bit when I would make an aggressive stop in the lateral direction. The speed carbon plate made for a stable and explosive feel underfoot, and throughout the test period I never had any major issues with lateral stability, but that little bit of give in the uppers later in the playtest would be a slight knock."

This area of performance proved to be one of the strongest for Jason’s Rush Tour 5s. He explained, "The side-to-side stability is where these shoes really shine. I found the uppers and chassis to be very rigid, in a good way, and planting and changing directions felt super secure. I did notice my feet were sliding within the shoes just slightly when moving forward. It didn’t cause blisters, but I did notice it."

Since durability proved to be one of the areas where the Rush Tour 5s were perhaps not quite up to scratch for some of our testers, it's a great thing that these shoes come backed by a six-month outsole guarantee. Jason, however, had the opposite experience; he found high levels of durability from his shoes. He explained, "I thought the outsoles of these shoes held up very well. I had 15 hours of play on them, and while I did see some tread loss up toward the toe area, it was nothing major to be concerned about."

The Rush Tour 5s wore a little faster than Troy would've liked. He noted, "I would say the durability of the Rush Tour 5s is average or maybe slightly lower than average considering they are high performance stability shoes. The rubber held up well enough to keep me from exposing the midsole layer, but I noticed the tread pattern started to go bald or smooth under the balls of my feet and toward my toes. Personally, at this point in my playing career, this is not an issue because I would likely get like two solid months of wear in them, and then I would redeem the sole warranty for a new pair as a replacement. Quite frankly, there are some shoes with more durable outsole rubber, but by the time I wear the rubber down they’re long past the point where I want to wear them."

Munish also found the durability to be a bit lacking for high-performance court shoes, though this is where the outsole guarantee thankfully comes in. He said, "I think the durability of the Rush Tour 5s is its worst feature. I have tested a few shoes in the past that have outsole warranties, and I have yet to see one that wore out like my Rush Tour 5s. I saw significant wear on the medial side of both shoes (right foot being the most worn)."

Chris also had some concerns with the lifespan of his Rush Tour 5s. He said, "I was disappointed in the durability of the Rush Tour 5s. I wore through the outsole under the big toe of my right foot. I had a similar issue when we tested the Rush Pro 4.5s, and I'd like to see better outsole durability from Wilson. The uppers held up well for me and resisted my toe dragging well."

While the Rush Tour 5s initially felt sticky on the court, the outsoles broke in nicely to give our testers a nice blend of grip and give when moving around the court. Chris picked up on this initial stickiness, but his pair of shoes broke in quickly. He said, "Out of the box I found the outsoles of the Rush Tour 5s to be a tad sticky. The outsoles were getting hung up on the court surface, and it gave the shoes a clunky feel. Fortunately, it only took an hour or so for the outsoles to scrub in and allow a little more give. From then on I found a solid level of traction from the Rush Tour 5s, and I felt like I was moving very well in them. Fortunately, the wear I had on the outsoles was in a small area, and the shoes still had plenty of tread left in other areas to grip the court."

Munish felt comfortable with how the soles interacted with the court from the get-go. He said, "The traction of these shoes is pretty good. I never felt like I was stuck to the ground, especially the first time trying these shoes, which is something I struggled with in the last two shoes I tested. I found that I could make quick stops and change directions without sliding out, even after wearing through some of the tread."

Jason needed a bit longer break-in period before the shoes were working well for him. He said, "The outsoles felt a bit stickier during the first hour or two, but after that they had a nice combination of grip and give, though they are a bit stickier than I prefer. I found it more difficult to slide out of shots on slower hard courts like our indoor court."

Troy found the traction of the Rush Tour 5s to be near-perfect. He said, "I thought the traction was great. In the Durability Section I mentioned that the rubber wasn't the most durable, but I found the traction to work really well for me, even after the tread pattern started to wear off. The main thing that I enjoyed is that the rubber never felt too sticky, even when they were fresh out of the box. As time went on and the tread wore off, I felt like there was a little less grip on the hard courts, but I still felt sure-footed and confident in my movement."

The Rush Tour 5s impressed with their ability to feel lighter than their listed weight. Jason was aware of the shoes' weight, but he also noted that they didn’t necessarily feel that heavy when he was moving around the court, particularly after breaking them in. He explained, "I definitely wouldn't categorize these as lightweight shoes. They do feel substantial when I put them on, but I think the weight is well distributed so they don't feel clunky. I felt like the shoes transitioned from heel to toe pretty smoothly after that break-in period.”

Troy also thought that the mass of the Rush Tour 5s was well distributed, and that the weight wasn't a bad thing at all. He said, "I thought they felt pretty on par with the weight they are listed at. However, they needed a little break in, which took about 30 minutes. The way they flexed, combined with the carbon braided speed plate in the midsole, gave the Rush Tour 5s fairly speedy feel even at the weight they come in at."

Chris wouldn’t classify the shoes as lightweight either, but it didn’t matter to him. He said, "I would not call the Rush Tour 5s light feeling shoes. Rather, I found these shoes to feel supportive and stable. I had a lot of confidence moving in them, so I actually felt very fast in them. I was able to forget about the shoes and concentrate on my tennis, which is always high praise for footwear."

Munish agreed the shoes definitely felt like they had some significant weight to them, but he didn’t think it was a problem. He explained, "I could tell that the Rush Tour 5s had some weight to them from the get-go, but never did I feel like it was slowing me down. I think Wilson used factors like good breathability and cushioning to make the shoes 'feel' light."