Head Graphene 360+ Prestige Tour Racquet Review

Groundstrokes - Score: 82

On groundstrokes, our playtesters were very impressed by the Head Graphene 360+ Prestige Tour's improved feel, control and plow through. To her surprise, Brittany thought this Prestige Tour was quite user-friendly and suited her game. She explained, "Over the last 20 years of playing, I have always considered myself a Pure Drive-spec girl, and I always thought the Prestige family was out of my league because it didn't match up with what I was looking for in a racquet. With the Prestige Tour, my beliefs have changed. The specs, from an 11.4-ounce strung weight to a 99-square-inch head size, make it the most user-friendly Prestige I have played with. Now, it did take me a couple of hits to really gel with the frame. At first, I was hitting a little shorter than normal and didn't feel like I had a lot of pace or weight behind my ball. Once I got used to the launch angle I started to really get a good groove on my groundstrokes, especially when drilling cross courts. I loved how low my slices were staying, and they allowed me to transition from a defensive position to a neutral or offensive one. One area that I struggled with from the baseline was reaching for balls when I was in a defensive position. I wasn't getting enough easy power behind my shots, and they were landing short and getting attacked."

Jason liked the updated feel of this new racquet. He said, "I noticed the improvement in feel right away. I felt much more connected to my shots with this Prestige Tour over the previous version. As far as playability, it's similar to its predecessor. I found it easy to swing, which made it good for hitting shots on the run or picking up half volleys. The tighter string pattern didn't negatively affect the access to spin too much, but where I felt that it did was the launch angle. I wasn't getting as much net clearance with this racquet as I'm used to, which resulted in shots landing shorter in the court."

Kristen really enjoyed the Graphene 360+ Prestige Tour on groundstrokes, and she liked how the racquet played overall compared to the previous model. She said, "I playtested the last model, the Graphene Touch Prestige Tour, and I definitely preferred the playability of this updated Graphene 360+ Prestige Tour. I felt more connected to my shots and found greater access to power. For a somewhat tighter 18x19 string pattern, I found great access to spin, and I particularly enjoyed hitting slice with this racquet. While it's not a shot I opt to use often, I was turning to it a bit more during this playtest. The ball would stay low over the net, and I could really drive through those shots with precise placement. I really enjoyed the weight of the racquet and how it swung through the air. It offered good maneuverability, but it also just felt very solid in hand, and I could swing through the ball with good stability and nice punch on contact. Overall, I was pleased with the playability on groundstrokes, but I did find it to have a sort of hollow-ish, tinny sound on contact, and that transferred over to some arm discomfort."

Erik needed some time to adjust to this racquet from the baseline. He described, "This racquet was a mixed bag for me. On groundstrokes, I really had to make sure I was feeling confident and relaxed when hitting my shots. Because of the 18x19 string pattern, I had to make sure I stayed low on shots and got below the ball while brushing up on the back to get the spin I desired. I also tended to aim an extra three or four feet above the net to account for the lower launch angle and to acquire the depth I was looking for. I found this racquet to be maneuverable when I relaxed, let the weight of the racquet speak for itself and came through the ball more naturally."

Volleys - Score: 84

Our playtesters felt that the Head Graphene 360+ Prestige Tour gave them the tools they needed to succeed at net. They appreciated how solid and stable the racquet was, though there was some disagreement about the feel. Jason found the control of the Prestige Tour to suit his net game. He said, "I really enjoyed volleying with the Graphene 360+ Prestige Tour. I felt the racquet lacked a bit of power and had a low launch angle when I was hitting groundstrokes, but it didn't matter so much up at net. There was still enough pop to punch a volley for a winner or put away an overhead. The great feel is what made it stand out to me. I felt like I was executing drop volleys very well because the racquet was so responsive and provided excellent feedback."

Kristen liked how stable this racquet was up at net, but she thought it lacked a bit of touch. She explained, "Moving into net, this racquet definitely felt stable for its weight. It was easy to get into position and punch volleys back into the open court in a point-and-shoot manner. I wasn't quite as dialed in on touch shots, probably due to the fact that I'm used to a more flexible frame, so the response off the stringbed was a bit different. I needed some time to adjust and get the right feel for those shots."

Always looking for an opportunity to come to net, Erik thought the Prestige Tour was very solid on volleys, but he found the feel slightly lacking. He said, "I liked how solid the racquet felt in my hand from the start, and the weight was excellent. The Graphene 360+ Prestige Tour was very point and shoot, and I felt in command of my volleys. I was connected to the ball, but I found the feel a little tinny and the sound slightly hollow. I did not particularly love how this racquet felt off the stringbed, but I liked the way it performed at the net overall."

Like the others, Brittany thought this racquet was very stable up at net. She added, "I did have high expectations when I headed toward the net. Even though I don't spend a lot of time there, I will most likely end the point there. The Prestige Tour had a perfect combination of stability and maneuverability. I never felt late when I was hitting volleys, but at the same time, the racquet was not getting pushed around. I felt Head made some strides in the right direction when it came to feel. I felt more connected to the racquet, and this allowed me to make some additional pick-up volleys and stretch volleys."

Serves - Score: 83

Our team thought the Head Graphene 360+ Prestige Tour provided excellent precision and plow through when they were serving. Erik liked the predictable response when he went for a huge first serve. He said, "I really enjoyed hitting hard flat serves up the T on the deuce side. I had excellent plow through with this racquet on serves, and excellent control as well. I was very confident serving with this racquet."

Brittany found unexpected power from the new Prestige Tour on serves. She said, "I was a little surprised when it came to serves. The Prestige Tour had more power than I expected, and I was able to generate some nice speed on my first serve. It wasn't the easy power of a Pure Drive or my racquet of choice, but it was a nice unexpected benefit. On second serves, I had to remind myself to keep my racquet speed up to get enough spin to bring the ball down. If I got a little tentative, my second serve would drop into the net."

Jason liked the lower powered response that the Graphene 360+ Prestige Tour provided, but he didn't find spin easily. He said, "The lack of access to spin hindered my serve a little. Since I wasn't getting as much spin, I felt like my serves were sailing long on me when I wasn't really snapping my wrist to maximize spin. The power level was average to slightly lower than average compared to what I'm used to from racquets of similar specs."

While Kristen appreciated the added power that this racquet provided on serves, she found that it took its toll on her arm. She explained, "I was able to really get the racquet head moving through the ball for some nice punch and pace on serves. I felt super connected to the ball and could pick my spots with high accuracy. I was starting out service points more aggressively than I normally would and could go into service games with a lot of confidence. I enjoyed serving with this racquet, but I could really feel its stiffness after service games."

Returns - Score: 82

With a 326 swingweight, the Head Graphene 360+ Prestige Tour performed well on returns and felt solid against even the heaviest of serves. Kristen found the mass of this racquet to serve her game well. She said, "I was impressed with how well the racquet handled pace from heavy serves. I was able to block back bigger serves with more stability than expected as well as take a bigger cut at the ball with good precision. I did have to be on my game, though, or returns would land a bit shorter than ideal."

Brittany found the Prestige Tour to be solid on returns overall. She described, "Nothing specific stood out when it came to returns. The Prestige Tour did everything decently well. I felt I could really swing through and not worry about the return launching. I could also block back first serves without the racquet twisting in my hand. Overall, the racquet did what it needed to do."

For Erik, this racquet was quite adaptable, and it held up even against the hardest hit serves. He said, "I had a lot of control and enjoyed blocking hard first serves back because of how solid the weight was. This racquet performed nicely on second serves as well. I could take big cuts at the ball and still found myself dropping it inside the lines. The racquet did lack some maneuverability when I didn't relax and tried to force the returns back into play, but I was usually able to take advantage of my chances on returns."

Looking to make his opponents play, Jason loved the precision that the Graphene 360+ Prestige Tour provided him, but he found a lot of his returns landing shorter in the court. He added, "I felt like I could have and should have swung out on my returns. The lower powered response, the tighter string pattern — it all added up to allowing me to take big cuts at the ball. However, when blocking or chipping a return back, I noticed that my balls were landing shorter than I would've liked."

Overall - Score: 83