Pure Aero Tour 2019 Racquet Review

Groundstrokes - Score: 88

Made for big ball strikers, the Pure Aero Tour 2019 comes fully loaded with everything players need to dictate points from the baseline. When hitting his groundstrokes, Troy was rewarded with easy access to power and spin. He began, "I loved rallying with this racquet! I found that the high launch angle made it easy to clear the net. This racquet possesses a firm feel, but I was impressed by how smooth it was on contact. It was much more comfortable than I recall the previous version being. There was enough swingweight and mass in this racquet to make it feel stable against hard hitters like Michelle. I loved hitting forehands on the run, and the high level of spin this racquet provided allowed me to dip the ball cross court with ease. I could take aggressive cuts at the ball on my backhand slice and generate a lot of backspin while keeping the ball skidding low. The only knock I had was that I wasn't completely dialed into my targets. I was spraying the ball more than I typically do when I tried to flatten out my groundstrokes and hit my shots near the lines."

Michelle gelled with this Pure Aero Tour from her very first hit. She said, "I loved the big sweetspot and the mass behind the ball. My opponents commented on how well I was targeting the back of the court and consistently pushing them back. The Pure Aero Tour 2019 has a decent swingweight, but it still felt fast and maneuverable to me. This racquet was powerful too, and I hit some big shots with it. My PlaySight data confirmed that I hit some huge forehands, which of course made me giddy. The more power I can access, the more fun I'm having! I did have to remember to avoid slapping, which I have a tendency to do when I play with Babolat racquets. I loved everything about this racquet from the baseline, but I have a small complaint that is not something I often note. I did notice some soreness in my arm after some long hitting sessions with this racquet when it was strung with a deader poly. It wasn't anything painful, but it was just that feeling you get after you've hit with a stiffer racquet. Ironically, I was concerned that this racquet would be too soft or mushy after hearing Babolat updated the Cortex technology, but in my case that was not the issue; I felt it to be a bit crisp."

Comparing it to the standard Pure Aero, Sean noted that the swingweight didn't see a significant boost, but he really felt the added mass in this Tour version. He said, "The extra weight resulted in a more solid and stable response at impact, but only when I was able to set up in time. If I wasn’t able to get the mass of the racquet accelerating at my normal stroke speed then there was a noticeable reduction in the depth of my ball. On the other hand, when I expended the energy required to swing this racquet effectively, the weight of my ball exceeded what I was able to achieve with the standard Pure Aero. This quality makes the Tour version less accessible, but far more lethal for those able to meet its high demands."

Erik felt that the Pure Aero Tour was extremely solid on his groundstrokes. He noted, "The first feature I noticed was the stability. The Pure Aero Tour felt extremely stable, and the weight was great in my hand. I felt like this racquet didn't get pushed around at all. I could keep my slice low if I really focused on hitting the ball out in front, but most of the time I found the slice sitting up from the back of the court. I generated a lot of power, but it was complemented with a lot of spin. There was a good amount of weight without the racquet ever being slow or sluggish. It worked okay for my game style. I found myself having to really swing out and accelerate the racquet through the ball or else it played a little unpredictably for me."

Volleys - Score: 88

Stable enough to stand up to big hitters, the Pure Aero Tour 2019 was also maneuverable and easy to get into position. Erik commented on how maneuverable this racquet played at the net considering its weight. He said, "The Pure Aero Tour was very easy to volley with. I found myself hitting the ball deeper with this racquet, and I mostly guided the volleys rather than punching at them."

Despite having some difficulty maneuvering this racquet from the baseline, Sean was able to get the Pure Aero Tour into position quickly at net. He said, "The weight and the 68 RA stiffness rating offered tons of stability and punch, perfect for handling big pace and spin, and for putting the ball away. Touch was never going to be a strong suit of this racquet at net, but the option to drop the ball short was still there if I really softened my hands."

"At net, I felt unstoppable," said Michelle. "I literally felt like I could not miss. The stringbed was solid at contact, and the Pure Aero Tour was maneuverable. I could block big balls back, and I could pick up the speed on my own to keep the balls deep and at my opponent's feet."

Troy also found the Pure Aero Tour 2019 solid and stable when hitting his volleys, especially in doubles. He described, "The sweetspot was huge, which made this racquet very forgiving while playing doubles. Compared to the Dunlop Srixon CX 200 Tour 16x19 that we recently playtested, this racquet made it easier to generate power and depth on my volleys. The power and the large sweetspot kept me confident when I was poaching or closing the net in doubles. Although this racquet didn't overwhelm me with touch or feel, I found it to be an improvement over the previous version. I enjoyed the amount of feedback it offered when hitting drop volleys and sharp angles."

Serves - Score: 90

The Pure Aero line is known to enhance power when serving, and the Pure Aero Tour helped improve not only first serves, but also craftier second serves. Michelle said, "I have always loved serving with Pure Aeros because I'm able to pull a bunch of power and spin out of them, and this update was no different. I found massive first serves and had a fairly easy time executing them. Kickers were awesome, as were slice serves. I had zero complaints serving with the Pure Aero Tour 2019. It just came together, and my confidence built with each serve."

This was the strongest area of the playtest for Sean. He explained, "With a fluid motion, heavy racquets are pretty easy to get moving and then to accelerate into the ball, where the benefits of that weight are like a freight train. Even though the directional control could have been better, once I aimed for bigger targets I was rewarded with exceptional power, spin and, consequently, free points."

Troy also found easy power and spin on his serves. He said, "I didn't expect the power to be quite as high as the extended version of the Pure Aero, but power was easier to generate nonetheless. Because of the racquet's big spin window, I loved hitting my kick serve. Compared to the extended version, I found it easier to pronate my wrist and generate an extra boost in spin. I was rewarded with lots of pace when I was going for flat serves. If I had to knock this racquet, it just wasn't as precise as some of the more control-oriented racquets I typically play with. For example, the Yonex VCORE 95 offers a lot of precision on serves. With that said, I found the serve precision to be on par with a racquet like the Yonex VCORE 98 (305)."

Erik said, "This racquet was great on serves. I was able to hit the ball quite deep with a lot of action. On my second serve I could hit a ton of spin and dip the ball into the service box with plenty of kick."

Returns - Score: 85

Our team was a bit torn when it came to returning with the Pure Aero Tour 2019. Some loved it, while others had a harder time making it work for their game. Because Sean struggled with the maneuverability of the Tour on groundstrokes, it shouldn't come as a surprise that this was the hardest shot for him to hit during this playtest. He said, "I found it very difficult to take a full swing on my returns, which often resulted in me catching the ball late. Blocking the ball back was sufficient, but even that was not as effective as I would have liked. Seeing as this is normally my favorite shot to hit, I was disappointed that I had so much difficulty returning."

Troy had a much more positive experience than Sean. He said, "Easy power and a stable feel on contact made this racquet a real weapon on my returns. When I didn't have time to take a big backswing there was enough mass to reward me with deep returns. Whenever the serve landed in my wheelhouse I could really punish the ball. Sometimes there was a bit too much power. My backhand slice return had easy depth, but I couldn't place balls as precisely as I can with the VCORE 95. I like the slightly softer feel on contact with this 2019 version, but it’s still a bit on the stiff side. When it comes to hitting returns against bigger servers (100+ MPH), I prefer a softer, heftier racquet to help absorb some of the shock."

Returning with this racquet was fun for Michelle since she already found success slapping groundies from the baseline. She said, "The Pure Aero Tour 2019 was stable enough for me to block big serves back, and it was fun to step up and crack offensive returns as well. In doubles, I felt like I could whip around the ball well enough to get a dipper cross court to pull the server off the court. It was pretty versatile! This is definitely a good racquet to rip returns with."

Erik enjoyed the depth he was getting on his returns. He concluded, "I could chip returns back deep when I was on the stretch, which gave me more time to set up for my next shot. The Pure Aero Tour was very stable when I was returning first and second serves, and I never felt like I was getting pushed around. This racquet was very easy to get around my body and was extremely solid on contact."

Overall - Score: 87