Racquet Terms

Front 1

composite

Back 1

a racquet made by a combo of various materials such as graphite, fiberglass, ceramic, boron, twaron, kevlar, etc.

Front 2

face

Back 2

the hitting surface of a racquet

Front 3

flexibility

Back 3

the amount of bend (flex) of the racquet when the ball strikes the racquet

the stiffer the racquet, the more power but more shock to the arm; flexible racquets offer less shock

Front 4

frame

Back 4

the racquet structure itself

Front 5

graphite

Back 5

common synthetic material used in making racquets

replaced wood as the standard racquet material

Front 6

grommett

Back 6

the plastic tubing in the head of the racquet through which a string passes

protects the string from being cut by the edge of the frame

Front 7

gut

Back 7

expensive, resilient racquet strings made from animal intestines

Front 8

handle

Back 8

the area of the racquet where it is gripped

Front 9

head

Back 9

the part of the racquet designed to do the hitting

Front 10

hybrid stringing

Back 10

originally where both gut and synthetic strings on the racquet so the strings would last longer before breaking

now strong string, such as kevlar, is used for the mains in conjunction with a more "playable" string used for the cross strings

Front 11

large head

Back 11

an oversized racquet of approximately 100 sq. in. or more

Front 12

main strings

Back 12

the vertical strings--the strings that run parallel to the handle

Front 13

mid-plus

Back 13

a racquet with head size ~90-100 sq. in.

Front 14

midsize

Back 14

a racquet with a medium-sized head ~90 sq. in.

Front 15

nylon

Back 15

a synthetic racquet string

Front 16

oversize

Back 16

a racquet head larger than the traditional smaller size of years past

sometimes used specifically to refer to the 100-sq.-in. or larger racquet head size

Front 17

synthetic gut

Back 17

a synthetic string consisting of twisted fibers designed to emulate the feel of gut