Babolat Pro Hurricane Tour 17 String Review

Power - Score: 45

Unlike some of the livelier co-polys, Pro Hurricane Tour places the burden of power squarely on the player. This proved to be a good thing for Andy, whose big strokes and powerful racquet didn't need any help generating power. He said, "I definitely did not feel that Pro Hurricane Tour provided me with extra power on my shots. With that said, the amount of control and spin I was able to generate allowed me to really swing out and unleash my own power. I felt it was a perfect complement to the Babolat AeroPro Drive that I put it in. I actually wanted a stiff, low-powered string to give me the control I needed."

Having never met a firm, low-powered poly he didn't like, Chris was predictably satisfied, saying, "I find this string to be low in power - even for co-polys, which are low-powered strings as a whole. I've always found this string to offer a firm response, which is ideal for deadening the stringbed, not so much for adding power. With that said, I really liked the level of power offered by this string! The low power level allowed me to supply the power with a big and confident swing at the ball."

Spin - Score: 87

With its low power and decent bite, Pro Hurricane Tour gave our playtesters the ability to attack the ball with loads of head speed. This gave Chris all the spin he needed. He said, "I was getting lots of spin out of this string. I found I could get the ball to dip inside the lines even when I was hitting a hard topspin shot high over the net. Even though this is a fairly stiff string, I found it to pocket the ball well on heavy spin shots, and it provide lots of grip on the ball. I also liked the bite I was finding from this string on slice shots. I was able to hit some heavy slice and really knife my backhand."

Getting some good snap back was Andy, who found he had to take big cuts to unlock the spin. He said, "The slick surface of the Pro Hurricane Tour slid on itself nicely and helped produce a good amount of spin. It doesn't have the crazy spin potential that a shaped or textured string would have, but it still offered a nice amount of spin. Once again, the stiff and dead feel allowed me to really swing out on the ball and generate the spin on my own."

Comfort - Score: 63

For Chris, Pro Hurricane Tour proved to be midway between a soft co-poly and a firm, traditional poly. He said, "This string offers better give than a traditional poly. It pockets the ball better and feels more comfortable. However, it is on the firmer side when compared to a lot of the softer co-polys. I actually liked its firm and crisp response and thought there was still enough give in the string for comfort."

Though it lacked the soft ride he enjoyed with Tourna Big Hitter Black 7, Andy appreciated the firm feel, saying, "Pro Hurricane Tour is definitely a stiff and dead polyester, but that isn't always a bad thing, especially when putting it in a high-powered racquet. The ball is pocketed nicely, there is a good amount of feel and a nice response off the stringbed, so I always felt connected to the ball."

Control - Score: 97

Control was the defining characteristic of Pro Hurricane Tour for our team. The low-powered response and predictable trajectory were designed for big hitters like Andy, who said, "Control is where the Pro Hurricane Tour really shines! The stiff stringbed doesn't get manipulated easily at impact, and the result is a consistent response. The control made it the perfect complement (as I mentioned before) to the high-powered AeroPro Drive I put it in."

In total agreement with Andy was Chris, who also gave this string a near perfect control score. He said, "My favorite aspect of this string is the amount of control I get when playing with it. I always felt confident taking a good rip at the ball with this string. The reason I like poly-based strings is because they allow me to stay on the gas and not worry about overhitting. This string definitely fit that bill, and I find it to be one of the more control-oriented co-polys out there. I was swinging big with this string in my racquet and loving every minute of it."

Playability Duration - Score: 75

Nothing lasts forever, including polyester. This wasn't a problem for Chris, who was still able to hit his mark after the feel changed and the tension dropped off. He said, "This string barely made the two-week mark before it started to feel like it had lost a fair bit of tension. However, although I found the feel to be lacking as it bagged out, I was still able to find control and spin."

Andy was more impressed with the tension maintenance and playability duration. He said, "Pro Hurricane Tour maintains tension and playability very well. Because it is so stiff it does not soften up and get bagged out easily like other softer polyester strings. It reaches the two-week playability threshold (that we like to use as a benchmark for polys) with ease."

Overall - Score: 83

Scores

(Scores are determined by averaging individual play test scores)

Playtester String Setups

Review date: November 2012. If you found this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us.

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