Breakdown

Comfort: 8.8

The Mizuno Wave Enforce Courts may be top contenders for the most comfortable budget shoes of the year. Our playtesters had only good things to say about the comfort. Troy found plenty of plushness from the Wave Enforce Courts. He also noted that the shoes were quite roomy at the forefoot for a regular-width model. He said, "Comfort was the best aspect of these shoes for me. I could feel the plushness as soon as I slipped them on for the first time, and how well they contoured around my toes. I felt the plush midsole cushioning as I moved around the court; it was a bouncy and responsive feel. Another aspect was how good they felt underneath my heels and arches. There was support there where I needed it, and the cushioning absorbed shock well. In terms of fit, I liked the length and how well the toe box contoured to my feet, with no pinching or unwanted toe jamming. Width-wise, they were a bit generous for me, and the uppers were starting to stretch a bit after a couple of weeks. The ventilation felt average to me. There was a lot of mesh built into the uppers, but it was more of a reinforced mesh (thick and padded); it's great for comfort but not the most free-flowing in terms of air."

Mark was surprised by how breathable the Wave Enforce Courts were. He even complimented the stock insert, mentioning how supportive it felt for his higher instep. He said, "The underfoot cushioning of Mizuno's ENERZY and Foam Wave midsole material was better than average, and especially impressive considering these are lightweight court shoes. The stock arch insert provided additional comfort, and although the arch height felt medium to low, my high-instep foot was nicely supported. In terms of overall fit, the length was spot on, and the width is a pretty wide medium or 'D' size. On a scale of 1 to 10, I give the breathability of the Mizuno Wave Enforce Courts a solid 7, which for me was great."

As one of our resident sliders, Oak complimented the Wave Enforce Courts and their comfort levels during aggressive movements and sliding. He said, "These Wave Enforce Courts from Mizuno emphasize comfort above all else. The cushioning is more than evident, and the underfoot feel is quite pleasant overall. They feel well ventilated, and I never felt like my feet were too warm or too sweaty during play. They also felt comfortable during more aggressive movements, such as a controlled slide or when sprinting for a drop shot. The arch support was sufficient, although my feet are on the flatter side so this is never a huge area of concern for me. Fit-wise, the toe box had ample room to remain breathable, but it was still snug enough to keep from being slippery or unstable."

Foot Support / Stability: 7.1

According to our playtesters, the lightweight nature of the Wave Enforce Court shoes took away from their support and stability. Troy found great support from the Wave Enforce Courts at first, but he noticed that the shoes became more flexible as they wore in, and not necessarily in a good way. He described, "I was able to cinch up the laces and create a nice, secure fit during the initial testing. However, as time went on (after a couple weeks of wear), I noticed the upper material opening up just a bit, and the support level and the lock-down reduced over time. In terms of lateral stability, I felt like these shoes could have used a bit more rigidity in the midfoot region. The forefoot has an outrigger, which helps somewhat in terms of lateral stability, but I felt like these shoes had a bit too much torsional flexibility later in the playtest. I think the Wave Enforce Courts could have used a shank in the midfoot so they would hold up under pressure a bit better when I make lateral cuts. Because these shoes are so light, I think they could have been made a bit more stable without sacrificing the performance too much."

Although the support and stability levels of the Wave Enforce Courts were not the stand-out features for Mark, he gave the shoes passing marks here. He said, "The low stance kept the Wave Enforce Courts fast and stable throughout every session of the playtest. Although the upper stretched out after several hours of play, I was able to use the lacing system to maintain a snug and supportive fit long after the playtest was complete."

Oak felt that he was unable to make the same aggressive movements with the Wave Enforce Courts that he could make with some of his other shoes. He explained, "For an affordable model, these Wave Enforce Courts offered a surprising amount of support, and they outperformed many of their counterparts in competing price ranges. But be warned, these shoes may not be the best option for you if you’re an aggressive mover. At times I felt like I couldn't completely trust the stability of the shoes. When I had to make a split-second decision about where to go after split-stepping, I found myself 'spinning out' from the toes of the shoes at times, like my feet were moving faster than the shoes. In terms of heat-of-the-moment reactions and speed, the shoes had a ceiling for me. Mizuno elsewhere has excellent high-performance footwear, so this didn't feel like a design flaw or anything like that. For what you get, the support and stability felt well above average for this class of shoes, and I think they'd work well for the player whose game doesn't necessitate more rigorous movement."

Overall Sole Durability: 7.4

One of the surprising factors of the Mizuno Wave Enforce Courts was their durability. All our playtesters raved about how well the outsoles held up. Troy complimented the X10 Rubber Compound and thought it was much tougher than it looked. He explained, "I found the outsole to hold up well throughout the playtest. I could tell by the look and the feel that there wasn't a ton of rubber reinforcement to the outsole, but the X10 Rubber Compound proved to be pretty strong. Even though there wasn't a built-up outsole like with the Mizuno Wave Enforce Tour, I still found the outsole to hold up well throughout the playtest period (roughly 15 hours on court). However, for those players who wear through their outsoles quickly, I would likely recommend going with the Wave Enforce Tours. Those shoes are more durable overall and come with a six-month outsole guarantee. As far as the toe region of these shoes, I noticed some balding at the tip. There was some scuffing where the outsole meets the upper, and although I didn't wear through the material, ideally I would like that part of the shoe to be a bit more protected."

The compliments continued as Mark highlighted the shoe's exceptional durability. He said, "The longevity of the outsoles was another standout quality and was better than average, especially for such a lightweight tennis shoe."

Considering the amount of sliding he did, Oak noticed very little wear on his pair of Wave Enforce Courts. He said, "I put in a fair amount of hours on the shoes, getting up to around the 20-hour mark or so, and they held up pretty well. They did get fairly dirty rather quickly, so from a visual standpoint this wasn't the prettiest pair of shoes I've had for an extended period of time, but the uppers held up well and broke in quite nicely, and they weren’t uncomfortable initially either. What really surprised me was just how well the outsoles held up. For the amount of sliding that I am prone to do, these shoes hardly showed any signs of outsole wear. It is quite rare that I wear through the uppers more than the outsoles of a pair of shoes. The toe durability was pretty good, but I did start to eventually notice some scuff marks around the toe box. These were mostly cosmetic imperfections and didn’t have any bearing on the shoes' performance."

Traction: 8.3

In general, the traction of the Mizuno Wave Enforce Courts was very well received by our playtesters. That said, they did note that the X10 Rubber Compound, as durable as it was, had a limit when it came to traction. Oak found that he couldn't trust the traction of these shoes all the time, mostly when he had to make sudden intense movements. He said, "Traction was pretty good for the most part, but I found that the Wave Enforce Courts had an agility ceiling during the most high-pressure situations. I was slipping out on my toes mainly in these more intense moments, and I felt like I couldn't rely on the shoes to give me the maximum levels of performance I would want from a court shoe. Again, this isn't a knock on the shoes, but rather an acknowledgment of their limitations as a takedown model. Despite their lack of traction in the aforementioned moments, the shoes did feel grippy and connected to the court when in a more neutral position."

On the other hand, Troy found ample traction from his pair of Wave Enforce Courts. He said, "Traction was ideal. I love the feel of this X10 Rubber Compound and how it grips the hard courts. I played with these shoes on a few different hard courts, some with more grit than others, and I liked how well these shoes gripped on all of the surfaces. I felt confident that when I stuck my foot in the ground, so to speak, I could push off aggressively without losing my footing. As the shoes broke in, the rubber still gripped the court effectively when I needed to stop and change directions, but it never felt too sticky. The rather flat profile of the outsole and the outrigger design provided me with a lot of surface area and feel for the court; in a sense, I think it enhanced my movement."

The Wave Enforce Courts' traction was more than sufficient for Mark. At first, he was worried about the outsole being too sticky, but to his relief, that wasn't the case. He described, “Traction was spot-on from my first step onto a hard court in my pair of Wave Enforce Courts, with no film or layer of stickiness that needed to be worn off."

Weight: 8.5

Given that the Mizuno Wave Enforce Court is marketed as a speedy shoe, the light weight wasn't too surprising for most of our playtesters. However, these shoes were lighter than Troy was expecting based on the focus on support and stability in the rest of Mizuno's Enforce lineup. He explained, "Since they are part of the Enforce family, which is known for stability, I expected them to be heavier and beefier. That said, they felt very light and pretty quick as I moved around the court. I would say that for stability and durability-oriented shoes, I would actually prefer them to be beefed up a bit. I think these Wave Enforce Courts could use a midfoot shank and maybe a more reinforced upper material. If these shoes were close to around 14 ounces, but improved in those areas, I would really love them. So the moral of the story is, although the lightweight feel is nice, and some players might like that aspect, I think they are missing the mark slightly in terms of stability and support."

Mark weighed his pair of Wave Enforce Courts before starting this playtest and found that they were right in his wheelhouse. He was convinced that these shoes were made for light and speedy movements, saying, "My pair of U.S. men's size 11s tipped the scales at 11.75 ounces, which reinforced my notion that the Wave Enforce Courts are speedy and agile court shoes."

As a fan of lightweight shoes, Oak thought that the Wave Enforce Courts felt light, but not necessarily streamlined. He said, "The weight of these shoes comes in at a little over 12 ounces in a size 10.5, so with me rocking them in a 9.5, I had absolutely no issues when it came to weight. I was thrilled by their lightweight nature and enjoyed how they felt when running around. The shoes are on the slightly bulkier side in terms of their geometry, so having a lighter shoe to counteract the larger size went quite a long way."

Breakdown Summary