As a junior Pete Sampras hit with a Donnay racquet and loved it. However given the quality and heritage of the Prostaff went in that direction instead.
Interestingly enough...Iga Swiatek just won the French Open swinging a Prince Tour! When is the last time a Prince racquet was a partner in crime in winning by a singles Grand Slam? Sharapova's 2006 US Open?
Great video in every way. Thank you for holding your promise and producing this excellent material. You really told us a well put together and an interesting story.
And to follow up, I love Prince and am a Phantom pro user. I believe the O port racket line was the best game improvement frame line for rec players, ever. But joe public would rather use the cool aeropro or heavy rf 97 than something that would probably help their game more. So its marketing. Perhaps if Sharapova stayed with Prince, perhaps if Ferrero beats Roddick in the 03 us open final, perhaps if Isner years later, wins a slam, if Ferrer upsets Nadal 13 RG final...maybe its a different story for Prince.
too late this comment but my short story at tennis is tied with Prince. I am now 70 years old ( still moving very well ) and I begun to play 6 years ago after several sports. I was lucky because at that time the Textreme 100 Tour T had good reviews so I bought it. In spite I like it a lot I tried other brands recently (Wilson, Head, Yonex) but I get back always to my Prince. Is very arm friendly and quite easy to maneuver. I love it.!! Even so, I ordered now the Prince Ripstick 280 but with what you said about stringing these modern prince racquets I got worried. I hope my stringer does not raise problems with it.
Yes definitely! Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
This should have become a series. "What Happened to....." Fox Donnay Slazenger Puma Estusa Bancroft Fischer Rossignol Snauwert Kneissel Adidas There are so many companies that either completely disappeared or are barely hanging on that you could talk about.
Because of an anime titled "baby steps" I went and bought a price racquet (the main character uses one). I got the Beast by price. I use it every now and then for warming up ( I use the pro staff team for most part) or feeling nostalgic because it was that anime that got me into playing tennis
My very first racquet was a Prince J/R, then I played with a lot of racquets that tried to approximate the Graphite feel (esp. some of the Radicals from Head) without ever owning one, then 5 years ago I got around to buying a couple of PCG 107 and love them. I still keep an RF97 in the bag on days when I want to work on my footwork and timing since it’s more demanding and with a smaller sweet spot, but the PCG 107 with Volkl Cyclone 17 at 47/45lbs and it’s just about the ideal setup for me in terms of allowing me to really carve the ball with topspin on clay while still getting some good power (great drop shots too). I’ve experimented with the PCG 100 LB as well and it’s definitely worth a try if, like me, you have a 2HBH. I hope Prince sticks around for some time, because there’s really still nothing out there quite like the Graphite 107.
Prince screwed up by deciding they'd rather earn rents on their IP when they were able to patent the hole. Something that frankly should have never been patentable. But they got away with one, and they decided they had caught a golden goose that shouldn't exist, and they lost interest in tennis. Plain and simple. They didn't just stop giving a hoot about stringers (not just making the racquet hard to string, but requiring a kindergarted color coded mess of a key ring of boomerangs to be able to handle their entire line). They also stopped giving a hoot about the pros who were using their racquets. The nail in their coffin was when Maria switched... and it was my read, from the press around the time, that basically Prince was saying, yeah, we don't want to pay you what your worth in terms of sales... because really we don't care about selling stuff anymore, we just want to earn rents on our magic patent. And you say they failed, but bankruptcy for those cats wasn't a failure. It reflected the fact that they knew the golden goose might stop laying eggs, so they ran to the bank with this stream of gold eggs that was coming in and said, "we'll take the cash now please", and they did... The guys with the corner offices were no left shaking tin cups on the street corner. They appropriated all the value in that company in the form of cash-out's. I would also say that it's difficult to fathom when you are a stringer how many people buy a raquet and never, for it's lifetime, ever have it restrung. Even HS players who are playing seasonal tennis at a pretty high level in their region or state might not string their racquet more than 1 time each year. So I don't think there was a massive market drop with those kids, or for that matter most recreational players... but you did get into a situation where Prince would be sponsoring a junior playing at the national tournament level, and those kids walk in with their racquets to the club shop for a re-string and the tech there says, sorry, I have to charge you extra to string that because of the extra time, etc. Those kids aren't fussy about their racquet configuration like the pros. You can give them 3-4 choices from a line and they are like, yeah, I like this one. Done deal. They (or their parents) were probably like, damn, I don't need this headache getting that Prince racquet restrung. And there's the racquet tech ready with the answer - I got a lot of kids who switched to this Babolat.
Having a hard time following your story. What does “IP” and “rents” mean? Did they commit financial misdeeds in a Lehman Brothers sort of way as Harry discussed? Or did something else lead to their Chapter 13 filing?
@@BorisBecker1872 There has definitely been a lot of changes and uncertainty with Prince in recent years. The Prince brand currently operates under a licensing model where the IP (trademarks, patents, etc.) is owned by a partner company who specializes in licensing by the name of Authentic Brands Group. In this model, ABG act as the licensor and Prince works with operators around the world who act as their licensees. These licensees manage the day to day operations of the brand in their particular markets (sales, distribution, customer service, etc.) while the Brand and Marketing team in the US manages the global product development and marketing operations. For the past 1.5 years Prince has been working with Tennis Warehouse and Dick’s Sporting Goods to be their licensees and distribution partners in the US market and have been working to regain the brands place in the wholesale market through the Tennis Source B2B platform. The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same. Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
It sounded to me like he was saying the market drop was less down to customers being annoyed at how much restrings cost or how often they had to do it, it was more because the tennis shops didn't like restringing them so presumably more and more shops stopped wanting to stock Prince racquets in the first place, or would be more likely to recommend other brands to customers, and over time that's probably going to have a big impact. But yes, I expect dissatisfaction from the actual players (or their parents, as you point out) would have an impact too. This was a useful video - I used to love Prince tennis racquets and especially their squash racquets, but the quality really went downhill in the last few years, and this helped explain why.
Wow, thanks for the history. I started playing tennis in middle school, so around 2005 for me. I started off with Prince. I had no idea Babolat was a new(ish) brand. I always though it was a high end, legacy brand much like Wilson. Of course, it didn't help that it was always Raf vs Roger.
I have in my home: 1.Slazenger (wooden) 2.proKennex (aluminium) 3.Wilson (graphite) 4.Rossignol (graphite) 5.fin (>>) 6.Donney (>>) The best of all was the Donney! Also in the shadows.😟
I loved my O3 black. Prince used to be and probably still are a very innovative tennis company. They had good shoes too. They suck on the business side though. I switched to Head a few years ago.
I remember while I was learning tennis, my daddy gave me two Prince Classics. I raised my level with them. After some time, both got broken in the throat. It was by playing, not racket abuse, hahaha.
Yes, unfortunately that was a common problem with the Classic and especially the Pro aluminum racquets (not only yours ... lol). It probably didn't help that the recommended tension back then was 72-80! They were game changers though!
His "spin" on Prince is to glorify their demise. Well, fwiw, Prince is coming out with great racquets currently, regardless of one distributor. The tennis shops are certainly not the "end all be all", since more people are buying online. The hope is that Prince can renegotiate their contract with TW, and get it more out to the public. And also, afford to sponsor a well know player.
Your in luck! Prince will be reintroducing the CTS Synergy DB26 and the original Graphite (with individual grommets and no bumper guard) as part of Prince’s 50th anniversary celebration! They should be coming out by the end of this month! Check out this podcast. ua-cam.com/video/Rhe4oNFhnPg/v-deo.html
I still sell tons of Prince tennis rackets here in Sweden. Most of the customers even ask to try only prince rackets, they dont want any babolat or dunlop or technifibre. but thats just my experience over here! :)
I played High School tennis in the early to mid 80's and my 1st oversized racket was a Wilson Extra. It was better than the wooden Wilson Kramer I learned with. I moved up to the Prince Pro during my 2nd year of H.S. I Always wanted a Prince Graphite back then but could not afford it. I graduated H.S in 84 after moving to a different school that didnt have a tennis team. I had 2 tennis courts 100 yards from my home though so I continued to play and in 1987 I got a crazy good deal on a new Prince Spectrum Comp 110 and Friggin loved it. Still have it today along with a collection of about 100 others. I have since bought all the old rackets I wanted when I was poor especially the original Prince graphite rackets I wanted so bad in the mid 80's. Including the Chang extra long ones. LOVE the old prince sticks. I lost vision in my left eye in 1988 which killed my depth perception so I could no longer play at a high level. But I still love collecting the old rackets of my youth.
Thank you for the history lesson on my favorite tennis brand! I’ve played with Prince all my life. I tried Babolat, Wilson, Head, Yonex, but I keep coming back to Prince. It’s the most arm friendly racquet for my tennis elbow.
Yes, the Phantom line awesome for comfort with old school look and feel, enhanced with modern technology! Look for these new limited edition frames coming out in October! •Phantom 100G (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar) •Phantom 100G LB LTD (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar and 28”) •Phantom 107G (updated version on the Phantom w/a crossbar - 21-17mm CTS section)
Albert Murata thanks for the info! I currently use a Phantom 100 and Tour 100 with O ports. I will selling my Wilson Clash 100 for the new prince probably.
@@ChowDownDetroit Looks like we have the same taste! Played with the same racquets with some customizations - weight 330g & swingweight 310. 2014-17 Tour 100 w/ string ports at 3:00 & 9:00 and string inserts at 12:00 2017-19 Phantom 100 w/tubing at 11:00-1:00 2020 O3 Phantom 100X w/tubing at 11:00-1:00 Note: I started using the string inserts, then later the tubing to provide a little more feel and make it less muted. Definitely buy the new O3 Phantom 100X, you'll love it! The Phantom 100X 305 and Phantom 100P are great sticks too, but I keep going back to my faithful O3! :)
The nice thing about this guy’s channel is that he gives great information, and he speaks so slowly that you can comfortably watch his videos on 1.5x speed. Good time saver!
Prince Composite Graphite 110! Used from 1988 thru 2019... Bought a Wilson...and yes ...I still have it...actually have my original and some extras I purchased
This was fascinating. I'm just getting back into tennis after ~25 years and it's a different world. The last racquet I bought was the Prince CTS Approach 90 (which I proudly still own). Loved that racquet. Back in the day Prince was also a huge innovator in the squash world as well. They were the first to put strings through the throat with their "CTS Extender" if anyone remembers that.
I am in the same position myself, I’ve grabbed so many nostalgia racquets off eBay to hit with, really cool and some great memories. Prince cushion grip vortex was a super comfortable grip
I had my stolen when I car stolen and it was in the trunk...I was more upset at losing the racket as I had worked all summer for it...it wasn't cheap...the car was insured.
I remember working in a tennis shop back in the 80s. The prince oversize graphite was 300.00 and The prince Boron was 500.00!!! We always said you were a MORON TO BUY A BORON
I’m loyal (for some reason) to Prince to this day, maybe it’s nostalgia, maybe it cause I was on staff with them up until their bankruptcy and I got out of the tennis industry. A big issue for me was quality control post bankruptcy. I was a fan of the T-22 shoe, but my first pair post bankruptcy was horrible and I haven’t went back. But I’m still out here balling with a Textreme. But early to mid 1990’s Prince was awesome. The whole CTS world of frames. Frames with power and weight. Colorful bags and accessories. Greats stuff. Babolat was brilliant in their American Launch, and that even though a few bells and whistles have changed, a Pure Drive is still a Pure Drive, Aeros are still Aeros.. etc. Some people don’t want to switch every season. You can stick with a line and spec (or super close to it) every season. That’s why Wilson needs to be smart and keep that Clash line as is for awhile, but I guess that doesn’t keep R&D people employed. Side note- I like how your videos say what I’m thinking as I’m watching it for the first time... the EXO3 Black, the stringing issues... good stuff. I’d love for you to go back and talk about the Wilson Profile line. If you need samples I can send you a couple. It’s an interesting story with that Author and all.
Yes, definitely are! If you're playing with the new Phantom I'm sure you're happy, but look for these new limited edition frames coming out in October! •Phantom 100G (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar) •Phantom 100G LB LTD (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar and 28”) •Phantom 107G (updated version on the Phantom w/a crossbar - 21-17MM CTS section)
I was sort of a tennis bum, trying to make a few bucks in Europe from the mid '70's-early '80's ( I was that rarest of breeds, an American that preferred red clay) doing some Bundesliga, ITF, challengers, and qualies. I was having a beer and happened to be sitting next to a Rossignol rep. We hit it off and, for the rest of my fledgling career, supplied me with racquets. First, the Strato (yes, still using wood) and then, the F200C (loved that frame!). So I have a soft spot for Rossignol tennis. Yes, do a video.
Prince O3's are the best hybrid rackets I have played with in 20 years of tennis - better than most other brands, esp Wilsons. John Isner still uses Prince and it has remarkable power and stability. It was designed for big hitters and pro tour players. Wilson and Babolat, Yonex have big player endorsements which is why they sell and they market their brands better. Pure drives are good though haven't like a single Wilson yet, lol.
Albert Murata somehow that stick plays so different than the #s would tell you. It doesn’t feel super heavy, it has plenty of spin, control for days, and huge serve power
Pam Shriver used the Prince Classic to reach the finals of the US Open. The major reason for the downfall began when Prince was purchased by the Bennetton family. That, coupled with a major decline in participation were the primary cause. Interesting that this was not even mentioned in this overview! The "O" series technology played a minor role in the overall picture. It was an important issue, but not a major reason for the decline.
Technology and innovation have been the cornerstone of the Prince brand DNA since the founding of the company in 1970. It’s been the driving force behind some of the most iconic racquets in the tennis industry. The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same. Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more! Howard Head’s goal from the beginning to help make tennis easier to learn and play better tennis. Prince has a tremendous history on innovation and game improvement and that’s why they still exist as a quality brand.
You're right, there was a major decline in tennis in the 2000's. It makes sense that at least one company went bankrupt, especially if they were bought out by incompetents.
I recently got back into Tennis, having grown up on Prince, i was devastated to not find them anywhere. A little more digging and i found this video (thanks). I was determined to buy Prince again as it has a cool retro feel, so i went over to tennis warehouse. Happy customer cheers
They have good raquets but they have, well i thik they have a bad marketing, there are good players with prince but not the best players. I have a prince raquet and i play with it but it´s just ok, but not like the other brands. Right now they are making better desitions.
@@joseberronesgomez440 Technology and innovation have been the cornerstone of the Prince brand DNA since the founding of the company in 1970. It’s been the driving force behind some of the most iconic racquets in the tennis industry. The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same. Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more! Howard Head’s goal from the beginning to help make tennis easier to learn and play better tennis. Prince has a tremendous history on innovation and game improvement and that’s why they still exist as a quality brand.
@@AMstringing Of course I know that prince are the reason for the modern tennis we know and that is why there are the great current brands. But they are no longer the kings of the industry, wilson, babolat, head, yonex and other brands are leaving a very high standard. I repeat they are not bad rackets, they are excellent, but it is not the prince of 10 years ago. And you tell me data from the United States, what about the rest of the world. The only rackets I've seen prince outside of the US are old or very rare 1 out of 30 if not 1 out of 50 players. I'm telling you, I play with prince but prince is no longer the same in today's market. I wish prince could get out of this and go back to being the king of tennis. Regards.
@@joseberronesgomez440 Thanks for your reply! The new 2020 Phantom line is awesome. Old school thin beam and feel enhanced with modern technology! Also, look for these new limited edition frames coming out in October! •Phantom 100 Graphite (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar) •Phantom 100 Graphite LB LTD (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar and 28”) •Phantom 107 Graphite (updated version on the Phantom w/a crossbar - 21-17mm CTS section)
I play with Prince Textreme Beast 100 and it is truly a beast. Soft on the arm but with lots of power, spin and control.The sound it makes on contact with the ball is just amazing!
Thanks for answering this! I love my Prince racquet and was disappointed when a number of vendors stopped selling Prince racquets. I think TW is the only retailer that sells racquets in the US.
In addition to Tennis Warehouse, Prince products can be purchased at retail and pro shops around the country in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Thanks for this video super informative..... would appreciate if you could do one one “Dunlop”..... i knew they were awesome for a long time then they sort of faded out..... and. Now they are back.... sort of Would like to hear your take on the brand “pro kennex” too. Thanks again for the videos
I still use the Biometric 400 , great racquet, easy on the elbow. They always have a following in England, but they come out with so many models it is hard to keep up.
By just having TW has the distributor, Prince losses a lot of users. A lot people prefer seeing racquets in person at a store. I prefer buying my racquets from my local store because they can make my money instead on an online shop.. I like to keep my local tennis shop around since I go there to restring my (and my sons) racquets.
I guess it depends where you live, but Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Depending where you live, Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
I almost kinda have to add to the History of the Babolat entrance...just cause people argue I have dementia... and I don't really. I was "training" in Paris in 1998-1999 with a 12-13 year old Rafa Nadal and Babolat let me try their prototype that was not usta approved because I was in Europe, playing there. And I did so well with it, they let me keep it, but I brought it back to the US and I beat Andy Roddick with it and usta officials got all confused, because I was 16 and he was 18 about to turn pro, and Babolat got contacted and Tony Nadal had to come to my hometown take it from me... Spike Lee only used Prince racquets and told me in an elevator "you killed Prince" and I was like what? He was like "The racquet... " because Roddick told him I was the reason he wanted to use that racquet. He was going to use Wilson though. Prince was at Roland Garros when Babolat was testing their racquets, Prince knew they needed to spend more in r&d but from testing with pros and jrs at Roland Garros, and I'd bet others, they knew they were done with racquets. Rafa killed Prince Racquets, it was kinda, who ever builds Rafa's raquet, or Novaks, would be in the racquet game. I do remember Prince representatives being sorta sad and saying they're not really a tennis company anymore, in 1999.
Prince's revamp is a blessing in disguise. They're developing racquets with tons of feel, and no hype. The 2018 Prince Phantom 93p is easily my favorite racquet since the original Head Prestige Classic. Definitely not for everyone, but I recommend it for hitters looking for a more traditional feeling players stick.
Agree . . . that's a true player's stick. Any racquet that comes with a leather grip is saying something! Have you tried the 2020 Phantom 93P? Just wondered how you felt about the added Twaron?
@@AMstringing I have not, although I'm really curious. I suspect it brings the sweetspot a little higher where it needed it from the first iteration. Please let me know if you get a chance to hit with it...
Yes, there a bunch of great Triple Threat frames! If you liked the Diablo Mid 93, you'll probably like the new Phantom 93P. It looks like it came out of the same mold! Only thing is that you'll have to decided between the 16x18 or 18x20. The Diablo had an unusual 16x20 pattern.
@@AMstringing Same with the triple threat graphite mid, its 16x20 (i still have it ;). Currently I really like the Wilson blade, wouldn't mind demoing one of the Phantom 93Ps tho
@@chuckharris4855 Great, I don't suppose you live in Hawaii? I'm a Prince dealer on Oahu and would be happy to string up a demo for you. If not, Tennis Warehouse has a great demo program and I hope you can get your hands on one!
Great explanation but you left one thing out… had Prince sponsored Federer or Nadal it would not have disappeared. They lost Agassi to Head… and that wasn’t easy to deal with. Wilson had Connors, then Sampras, then Federer… They get paid zillions because people (specially youngsters) want to imitate their idols. Babolat did a great job with that… Prince did a terrible job at that. I was sponsored by Prince at some point and they started offering less merchandise, less money (I wasn’t getting money myself but friends did)… so all this plus everything you explained killed Prince.
Interesting perspective Harry. My first racket in High School was the aluminum alloy Head Master, and later I played with a Prince Pro. Much later when I got back into Tennis I tried a Babolat and ended up choosing a Prince "O3" racket after testing a few. I decided to start stringing my own rackets, so I started on the "O3" rackets and never had much trouble, perhaps because I read the instructions and selected a machine that had a table lock and skipped all the weird techniques. Never had to bore a grommet, the frames are marked for the tie-off points, at least for the Tour 100's I have. "O3" rackets can also be strung 50/50 on the crosses which avoids the port issues. Seems like less of an issue than many other strange grommet layouts and one piece stringing - problems that lots of other popular rackets manage to survive. One piece stringing is perhaps the problem, some rackets are just not well suited for it. I never string one piece anyway, usually want a hybrid or a different tension in the crosses, and many tournaments and pros avoid one piece. I suspect it wasn't so much the stringers, but there were many other issues at a higher corporate level and more competition from other manufacturers that started some business transactions and bad decisions that damaged the company and caused the majority of the problems. Sad to see it, hope TW can bring them back. Thanks for your fun videos.
Demo'd a handful of racquets after playing with an o3 speedport tour in 2007. Landed with the Phantom 93p. It's an incredible players racquet! If you're a fan of heavier, smaller sticks. Don't overlook it!
Very interesting story. I have owned some of them and I have strung quite a few. My favourite racquet (until the Wilson Pro Staff) was the Original Prince Graphite(107). What a racquet(still going on to this day)! But you've got to be in a very good shape to play with this stick. Memories....
I have been playing Prince for 10-15 years now, first just by chance finding a Prince on clearance, then later because they make some of the most arm friendly racquets on the market. I purposely went to a local pro shop for my first one but then couldn't find any locally, maybe now I know why. I have since added two Phantom 100s and I love them. No more problems with tennis elbow, although I also went to a longer swing using more shoulder.
I was thinking about this the other day. They’re still making decent rackets but I don’t see many tour players endorsed by Prince. Is it just a marketing budget decision?
That theory is not true, Luxlion string is not be stringing friendly to the racket-stringer but why it is so popular in the field? The downfalls of Prince are due to the acquisitions in the past two decades to a variety of different firms that those firms were not really enthusiastic to invest in the tennis business, particular in decrease spending the sponsorships to top pro players who supposed to enhance the brand awareness but the acquisitions contributed their firms' shares appreciation in the stock market. It's all about the resource and strategy of marketing, not about the preference from racket-stringers.
I agree. The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same. Prince is on a comeback! The teams from Tennis Warehouse and Dick’s Sporting Goods here in the US market have been working to regain their place in the wholesale market. Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Prince has really done a spectacular job with the Phantom line. I currently use the 2020 Phantom 100p and its a really solid and spectacular frame that has a nice balance of power and control. It's also quite arm friendly and plays well with a synthetic string.
@@hellohello-yi8yr The 100P is really a solid racquet with a great balance of power and control! It's really one of best point and shoot frames! Easy targeting for flat, topspin and slice! I highly recommend you making the switch!
@@hellohello-yi8yr Great! Here's a tip that I recommend to my customers when demoing racquets. Never go by first impression, while you're in that honeymoon stage with a new racquet. Play with it at least 3-4 times: #1 - Have someone feed you balls or hit on a ball machine. This will give you an opportunity to breakdown all your strokes and by repetition feel how the racquet behaves in your hand. #2 - Hit with someone and play some structured points. This will allow you to tailor game-like situations and what the racquet would feel like in competition. #3 - Play a set or a practice match. This will allow you to feel if you can trust the racquet in pressure situations.
The original Prince Oversize was 110 square inches for years. Pam Shriver used the original green throat model for her 1978 US Open Semi run... Monica Seles also played the Graphite...Prince at one point sold more racquets than the next two companies combined...Dominant Brand. Michael Chang helped develop the LongBody racquet ( with Steve Davis Designer ). I served on the National Teaching Pro Advisory Staff for Prince for 12 years, starting in 1984. I was a play tester for every new model ( even some prototypes ) during that time. if you have any specific questions what happened to PRINCE, send me a message.
Informative! Thank you. I am a stringer, yes, it is a pain in the butt to string, but I don't mind stringing them for myself. However, it is not a racquet I want to string on the regular! However, I still play with EXO3 White and still loving it!
Interesting points. I had the Prince Pro, Graphite Original OS, Mid, Mono, O3, Diablo, and now playing with Phantom 100G. I love their shoes too but now almost impossible to but in here in HK. Had my share of Wilson, Volkl, Fischer, YY, Technifiber and Head too. I couldn't play with any Babalot racket, too thick and the balance always felt strange to me.
I see prince doing now what babolat did in 2000. At least in my country, prince gives out the most number of racquet sponsorships by a long shot. You go to a tournament you'll see more prince than anything else. They are trying to build strong grassroots marketing. But I also see many coaches not recommendeding prince because they played during the X03 days.
That Prince with the bridge on the throat was their best racquet... but the O3 killed Prince, the company... flawed concept, they were trying to become the Apple of tennis racquets and got burned, what you gained in a bigger sweet spot was lost in power from the big O's. The heyday was the 90's, I saw Chang actually hit a 120mph serve with the extended version, good for him. Oh well, pride commeth before the fall.
Technology and innovation have been the cornerstone of the Prince brand DNA since the founding of the company in 1970. It’s been the driving force behind some of the most iconic racquets in the tennis industry, from the first oversized tennis racquet to the first extended length tennis racquet and more recently with technologies like O3. The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same. Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Very insightful, thanks. I'd like to add that Prince stubbornly stuck w the rectangular thin beam aesthetic, even with their thunder series, while's Babolat thicker oval/diamond beam delivered the power that polyester strings needed. Also, after the Prince 710 OS (the OS Rafter racquet), it literally took me 8 or 9 racquets to find one with the same feel albeit with more power. I went thru the ThunderLite 105 (no control), the more DB OS & MP (no feel AND no power, what's the point)? More control I think (super slim silver frame,). That POS went a decade back in time, bone jarring stiffness and no control nor power. It was one horrible playing racquet after another. I finally found my stride in the AIR DB, but the frames were so old that they completely lost power. All of the square holes thru the body were horrible. No control, too dampened. In the end they made one horrible racquet after another. I was loyal to Prince for over 20 years but once I started playing with Head & Dunlops I sold all my Prince. I only have their shiny orange bag now.
You left out Marion Bartoli winning Wimbledon with an Prince Exo3 .... I was introduced to Prince just about when the Exo3 line were introduced . And I must say . It was incredible . I bought the Ignite 95 Exo3 , developed tennis elbow and subsequently went through a whole lot of other Brand’s with variance to swing weight , balance etc . And after around 15years ... have come back to my Ignite 95 Exo3 . I can’t play with anything else without those open ports . But you have to admit that the company was innovative . Even their dampener is unique.
Technology and innovation have been the cornerstone of the Prince brand DNA since the founding of the company in 1970. It’s been the driving force behind some of the most iconic racquets in the tennis industry. The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same. If you like the thinner beam frames, check out the Phantom line. Very comfortable playing frames with the old school look and feel, enhanced with modern technology! Speaking about the Double Bridge dampener, did you know the CTS Synergy DB26 will be reintroduced in late August? It's part of Prince’s 50th anniversary celebration! Check out this podcast. ua-cam.com/video/Rhe4oNFhnPg/v-deo.html
Also I left out that their iconic P racquet face stencil has a blanked out bar that cuts through the letter . It just dawned on me that place on the stencil that is blanked out .. is where the sweet spot is ... perhaps so that the stencil ink doesn’t affect the strings ? Or that’s the first place where the stencil ink would fade off .....
@@chowchichang2922 Yeah, it's funny how some players would leave that part blank? Always wondered it was a fashion thing, or just didn't know that part was supposed to be inked in after? :)
The Prince CTS Approach 110 was the best racquet ever made. I still have six of them. Had a nice thin throat, but a wider frame at the top. Great stability and very powerful. Quite heavy, but overall the best racquet I have ever used. And lots of players used the Prince Pro. I remember when Peter Doohan beat Boris Becker in the 2nd round of the 1987 Wimbledon. Doohan used the Prince Pro. Prince defined 80's tennis. Sad to see them decline. Great video!
DAMN RIGHT!! I now use the Prince CTS Oversize Approach from 88. I am USPTA pro and have tried hundreds of racquets. The CTS models have a thick rubber grip over the handle which dampens shocks immensely. This is the only oversized racquet I could even play with.
@@guruofendtimes819 Nice. Absolutely right. Dampens shock, incredibly stable at the top of the racquet for players who hit high on the racquet, rubber grip over the handle, powerful, the throat just sits well in the hands. Prince CTS Approach 110! Thanks for the great comment.
There were a couple of port key sizes. If you had the proper key size, the racquet could be strung without using the brake. However, I found it just as easy and faster to use brake when pulling the crosses that required it.
Yes, that one is a classic :) You should check out the new Phantom 93P (14x18). Nice thin beam and leather grip! www.tennis-warehouse.com/Prince_Phantom_93P_14x18/descpageRCTWABG-P1493P.html
@tennis spin Can you tell us how Prince USA is different than Prince Japan? Are they both owned by the same equity firm or are they completely separate from each other?
Japan has their own license and works with ABG, like Tennis Warehouse in the U.S. Japan does have more input regarding racquet design. Recently, the Twistpower X100 was added to the Prince line which is originally a Japan licensee design. Check it out here: ua-cam.com/video/6rVg8Z9zaXI/v-deo.html Prince as a brand has not experienced the “turmoil” overseas it has in the U.S., which may explain why Japan have so many more products. Considering the state of the business here between 2012-2016, Prince is rebuilding what once was in the U.S.
I've owned and used a lot of rackets and brands and currently use a prince phantom pro 100p it's incredible.. don't sleep on this brand people .. I also own the Wilson clash which is ok but not in the same league as that phantom..in my opinion
Yes, agreed. Nice traditional box beam design. Have you tried the 2020 Phantom 100P with Twaron? Just wondering if you noticed the difference? www.tennis-warehouse.com/Prince_Phantom_100P/descpageRCTWABG-PPP10.html
I remember also the Prince Woody. Only the grey hairs used it. Maybe because it was expensive and bigger than a large pizza. I also remember when the first Prince Graphite came out and Glickstein used it to hit insanely fast serves. The first time I hit with the Prince Graphite I was blown away by its power. It was too expensive for most of us at that time. Now hardly anyone knows the Prince name. I wanted a Prince when I got back into tennis, but Bobolats were better. I tried the Prince, Wilson, Yonex, Head, etc. None of them felt as sweet as the Bobolat PureDrive. I guess their design leap-frogged the others somehow.
Major (played by Leconte, now bac via Tecnifibre, after many years), Dunlop (Haas, Anderson), Völkl (all Russian players in the 80s and 90s), Fischer (Stich and Bagdatis, now Pacific) Estusa (Becker), ProKennex… Many brands have only a minor piece of the cake now, when they’re not dead.
I owned and operated a a tennis shop in San Diego for 32 years (retired two years ago). This is a good video explaining why Prince went bankrupted. There is a little more to the story. First many viewers of the channel need to understand how big tennis was in the late 80's and early 90's. Wilson OWNED the tennis racquet market in the early 90's, close to 45% of all racquet sales in the US. This was close to $150M in sales (just racquets), today the top brands of Babolat and Wilson both make close to $25M each. In 1990 US racquet sales was near $250M, today the total US business is under $80M. All sports including tennis have decreased in play, big time. Prince did have a roller coaster ride starting in the 70's. Prince was sold around 2000 to several investors at a good price. Around 2007 Prince was again at the top the sales chart with the "O" racquet series. This group of investors sold it to another group of buyers at a huge profit, selling the company close to $100M. This is when tennis took another huge hit in actual number of peopling playing the sport. Prince had the #1 selling shoe for years, the T-22. Rumors had the company owing a large sums of money to an Asian production company that would no longer fabricate their shoes until the money owed was paid. Prince couldn't pay the loan so Prince moved production to Vietnam where new molds were required. Along with material changes the new molds changed the fit of the shoe. I would say Prince lost over 50% of their shoe sales because of this move. It forced our customers to find other shoes. Over time Prince sales dropped significantly and the cost of money over several years forced Prince to file bankruptcy. I'm not sure the exact number but rumors have the Prince licencing fee worth less $1M a year. Prince is now a TW house brand.
The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same. For the past 1.5 years they have been working with the teams from Tennis Warehouse and Dick’s Sporting Goods to be the licensees and distribution partners here in the US market and have been working to regain their place in the wholesale market. Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Watching this video in 2023. I knew when he got to his explanation it wasn't the full picture. Like come on, tennis store stringers was the reason the company failed? Thank you for explaining the rest of the story! Had to scroll too far.
getting endorsement by famous players is the most important. babolat and wilson won't be the best selling racket companies without pros like federer, nadal, sampras, serena williams, etc. other than the bryan brothers, the players who endorsed prince just wasn't able to make it big because of the big 4 dominating the competition, and not a lot of people really watch tennis for the doubles. if federer was using a prince racket, they would still be top selling rackets today, but then again, i think federer using wilson was because he idolized sampras as a child
@@semidios3994 he has quite a few, and sampras is definitely 1 of his favorites. he confirmed that during an interview after the match against sampras at madison square garden. he was even using the same racket model as sampras at the start of his pro career. the legendary pro staff 85
Good job on the history lesson of Prince although there are a couple of edits I would add. It was the 78 Open and she played with the Classic, not the Pro. Pam first began playing the Classic back in her epic battles with Elise Bergin in the juniors in the MALTA section. The Prince Classic took her serve and volley to the next level. Nobody hit top back then and her cupped, under slice forehand was a perfect match for that aluminum frame. She ALWAYS hit slice backhands and I think the Classic made it easier for her to keep the ball deep. She wanted to do one thing: get to the net and once there... game over. Cross Keys and Columbia Tennis Barn coaches like Lew Gerrard, Steve Krulevitz and I guess Candy? (never saw him) would drill into the MALTA juniors "take that short ball, drive it to a corner and get to the net". Pam was a master at it. MALTA tennis was strong back in the day with Shriver, Bergin and Baltimore Jr. Davis Cuppers like Jimmy Hodges, Rodney Harmon, Dek Potts but NONE of them would seriously consider the new OS frames. I remember one coach yelling "dont even bring one of those snowshoes to practice because if you NEED that, then you don't belong here...they are a fad and won't last, so don't bother!" lol, little did he know. . .didn't we hear that same thing about that strange thing called...the snowboard? lol. I still play my POGOS. They're enjoyable for the first 30 minutes and then I'm reminded why they call my division "Seniors" and I swap out for a lighter friendlier version..oddly enough it's a Head Radical Microgel OS. Keep going Prince and thanks again for your educational video.
From 13:00, the content is a joke. All stringers should be humble enough to read the stringing instructions before stringing an O3, or Exo3. They did have a stringing manual for stringers. They didnt bother to read thinking they are more than capable to string any racquet without reading. Absolute cocky. 50-50. Heard of it? Go try stringing a PowerAngle without going through the online instructions.
You should do one on what ever happened to Donnay Racquets!
As a junior Pete Sampras hit with a Donnay racquet and loved it. However given the quality and heritage of the Prostaff went in that direction instead.
Interestingly enough...Iga Swiatek just won the French Open swinging a Prince Tour! When is the last time a Prince racquet was a partner in crime in winning by a singles Grand Slam? Sharapova's 2006 US Open?
@@calvinm.miller4451 Most memorable? - Chang at the French
two bananas later and an underhanded serve to boot
I have a Jimmy arias Donnay Pro Cynetic One 85 sq. Inch and it is terrific. Some say it was made from the same mold as the Sampras racquet.
Great video in every way. Thank you for holding your promise and producing this excellent material. You really told us a well put together and an interesting story.
And to follow up, I love Prince and am a Phantom pro user. I believe the O port racket line was the best game improvement frame line for rec players, ever. But joe public would rather use the cool aeropro or heavy rf 97 than something that would probably help their game more. So its marketing. Perhaps if Sharapova stayed with Prince, perhaps if Ferrero beats Roddick in the 03 us open final, perhaps if Isner years later, wins a slam, if Ferrer upsets Nadal 13 RG final...maybe its a different story for Prince.
too late this comment but my short story at tennis is tied with Prince. I am now 70 years old ( still moving very well ) and I begun to play 6 years ago after several sports. I was lucky because at that time the Textreme 100 Tour T had good reviews so I bought it. In spite I like it a lot I tried other brands recently (Wilson, Head, Yonex) but I get back always to my Prince. Is very arm friendly and quite easy to maneuver. I love it.!! Even so, I ordered now the Prince Ripstick 280 but with what you said about stringing these modern prince racquets I got worried. I hope my stringer does not raise problems with it.
I demoed Prince Phantom 100P last month and it was an excellent racket. I believe Prince is on the comeback trail. Look out!
Yes definitely! Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
10-seconds version: Prince went bankrupt and sold its rights to TW.
Prince textreme tour is the best racquet in market now with combination of feel, spin, control, power...touch shots are wow...prince is back...
I don't really believe in brand loyalty or having sympathy for corporations but it is kind of sad to see them fall off
This should have become a series. "What Happened to....."
Fox
Donnay
Slazenger
Puma
Estusa
Bancroft
Fischer
Rossignol
Snauwert
Kneissel
Adidas
There are so many companies that either completely disappeared or are barely hanging on that you could talk about.
Because of an anime titled "baby steps" I went and bought a price racquet (the main character uses one). I got the Beast by price. I use it every now and then for warming up ( I use the pro staff team for most part) or feeling nostalgic because it was that anime that got me into playing tennis
My very first racquet was a Prince J/R, then I played with a lot of racquets that tried to approximate the Graphite feel (esp. some of the Radicals from Head) without ever owning one, then 5 years ago I got around to buying a couple of PCG 107 and love them. I still keep an RF97 in the bag on days when I want to work on my footwork and timing since it’s more demanding and with a smaller sweet spot, but the PCG 107 with Volkl Cyclone 17 at 47/45lbs and it’s just about the ideal setup for me in terms of allowing me to really carve the ball with topspin on clay while still getting some good power (great drop shots too). I’ve experimented with the PCG 100 LB as well and it’s definitely worth a try if, like me, you have a 2HBH. I hope Prince sticks around for some time, because there’s really still nothing out there quite like the Graphite 107.
Prince screwed up by deciding they'd rather earn rents on their IP when they were able to patent the hole. Something that frankly should have never been patentable. But they got away with one, and they decided they had caught a golden goose that shouldn't exist, and they lost interest in tennis. Plain and simple. They didn't just stop giving a hoot about stringers (not just making the racquet hard to string, but requiring a kindergarted color coded mess of a key ring of boomerangs to be able to handle their entire line). They also stopped giving a hoot about the pros who were using their racquets. The nail in their coffin was when Maria switched... and it was my read, from the press around the time, that basically Prince was saying, yeah, we don't want to pay you what your worth in terms of sales... because really we don't care about selling stuff anymore, we just want to earn rents on our magic patent. And you say they failed, but bankruptcy for those cats wasn't a failure. It reflected the fact that they knew the golden goose might stop laying eggs, so they ran to the bank with this stream of gold eggs that was coming in and said, "we'll take the cash now please", and they did... The guys with the corner offices were no left shaking tin cups on the street corner. They appropriated all the value in that company in the form of cash-out's.
I would also say that it's difficult to fathom when you are a stringer how many people buy a raquet and never, for it's lifetime, ever have it restrung. Even HS players who are playing seasonal tennis at a pretty high level in their region or state might not string their racquet more than 1 time each year. So I don't think there was a massive market drop with those kids, or for that matter most recreational players... but you did get into a situation where Prince would be sponsoring a junior playing at the national tournament level, and those kids walk in with their racquets to the club shop for a re-string and the tech there says, sorry, I have to charge you extra to string that because of the extra time, etc. Those kids aren't fussy about their racquet configuration like the pros. You can give them 3-4 choices from a line and they are like, yeah, I like this one. Done deal. They (or their parents) were probably like, damn, I don't need this headache getting that Prince racquet restrung. And there's the racquet tech ready with the answer - I got a lot of kids who switched to this Babolat.
Having a hard time following your story. What does “IP” and “rents” mean? Did they commit financial misdeeds in a Lehman Brothers sort of way as Harry discussed? Or did something else lead to their Chapter 13 filing?
@@BorisBecker1872
There has definitely been a lot of changes and uncertainty with Prince in recent years. The Prince brand currently operates under a licensing model where the IP (trademarks, patents, etc.) is owned by a partner company who specializes in licensing by the name of Authentic Brands Group. In this model, ABG act as the licensor and Prince works with operators around the world who act as their licensees. These licensees manage the day to day operations of the brand in their particular markets (sales, distribution, customer service, etc.) while the Brand and Marketing team in the US manages the global product development and marketing operations.
For the past 1.5 years Prince has been working with Tennis Warehouse and Dick’s Sporting Goods to be their licensees and distribution partners in the US market and have been working to regain the brands place in the wholesale market through the Tennis Source B2B platform.
The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same.
Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
It sounded to me like he was saying the market drop was less down to customers being annoyed at how much restrings cost or how often they had to do it, it was more because the tennis shops didn't like restringing them so presumably more and more shops stopped wanting to stock Prince racquets in the first place, or would be more likely to recommend other brands to customers, and over time that's probably going to have a big impact. But yes, I expect dissatisfaction from the actual players (or their parents, as you point out) would have an impact too.
This was a useful video - I used to love Prince tennis racquets and especially their squash racquets, but the quality really went downhill in the last few years, and this helped explain why.
I play with the prince phantom 93p 18x20. Its a nice, classic racquet
Wow, thanks for the history. I started playing tennis in middle school, so around 2005 for me. I started off with Prince. I had no idea Babolat was a new(ish) brand. I always though it was a high end, legacy brand much like Wilson. Of course, it didn't help that it was always Raf vs Roger.
I have in my home:
1.Slazenger (wooden)
2.proKennex (aluminium)
3.Wilson (graphite)
4.Rossignol (graphite)
5.fin (>>)
6.Donney (>>)
The best of all was the Donney!
Also in the shadows.😟
Pat Cash used the Prince Magnesium Pro aluminum racket when he won the 1987 Wimbledon.
I had the prince skunk back in 1992. First racquet I ever played with. I was 12.
Wao very informative, please make such videos of head and willson, we also want to know about them
I loved my O3 black. Prince used to be and probably still are a very innovative tennis company. They had good shoes too. They suck on the business side though. I switched to Head a few years ago.
I remember while I was learning tennis, my daddy gave me two Prince Classics. I raised my level with them. After some time, both got broken in the throat. It was by playing, not racket abuse, hahaha.
Yes, unfortunately that was a common problem with the Classic and especially the Pro aluminum racquets (not only yours ... lol). It probably didn't help that the recommended tension back then was 72-80! They were game changers though!
My dear Pat Cash won Wimbledon with prince
He was the last one to win a Grand Slam tournament with metal racquet - Prince Magnesium Pro 90.
I thought he played with a yonex
Demise of Prince is not unlike many other corporations. Hubris and a few mistakes.
I had a stormstick but broke it. I had a lot of fun with it. Switched to pro staff 6.0 95inch for a decade.
His "spin" on Prince is to glorify their demise. Well, fwiw, Prince is coming out with great racquets currently, regardless of one distributor. The tennis shops are certainly not the "end all be all", since more people are buying online. The hope is that Prince can renegotiate their contract with TW, and get it more out to the public. And also, afford to sponsor a well know player.
Correction: Pam Shriver reach the final of US Open in 1978.
And Pam was using the Prince Classic then, not the Pro. Putting his spin on tennis history.
Best racquet ever...prince synergy db26. Prince DNA helix string was awesome!
Your in luck! Prince will be reintroducing the CTS Synergy DB26 and the original Graphite (with individual grommets and no bumper guard) as part of Prince’s 50th anniversary celebration! They should be coming out by the end of this month! Check out this podcast.
ua-cam.com/video/Rhe4oNFhnPg/v-deo.html
I was really ready for the first 5 mins to be "I don't carry prince, now lemme tell you why. I don't carry prince"
Excellent insight
I still sell tons of Prince tennis rackets here in Sweden. Most of the customers even ask to try only prince rackets, they dont want any babolat or dunlop or technifibre. but thats just my experience over here! :)
Yeah they are doing great here in Japan as well. Lots of people are using them here, including me. Tour 98 suits me down to the ground.
I played High School tennis in the early to mid 80's and my 1st oversized racket was a Wilson Extra. It was better than the wooden Wilson Kramer I learned with. I moved up to the Prince Pro during my 2nd year of H.S. I Always wanted a Prince Graphite back then but could not afford it. I graduated H.S in 84 after moving to a different school that didnt have a tennis team. I had 2 tennis courts 100 yards from my home though so I continued to play and in 1987 I got a crazy good deal on a new Prince Spectrum Comp 110 and Friggin loved it. Still have it today along with a collection of about 100 others. I have since bought all the old rackets I wanted when I was poor especially the original Prince graphite rackets I wanted so bad in the mid 80's. Including the Chang extra long ones. LOVE the old prince sticks. I lost vision in my left eye in 1988 which killed my depth perception so I could no longer play at a high level. But I still love collecting the old rackets of my youth.
Prince is releasing an "Original" Original graphite OS. 107" headsize, 12.9oz, no headguard
Thank you for the history lesson on my favorite tennis brand! I’ve played with Prince all my life. I tried Babolat, Wilson, Head, Yonex, but I keep coming back to Prince. It’s the most arm friendly racquet for my tennis elbow.
Yes, the Phantom line awesome for comfort with old school look and feel, enhanced with modern technology!
Look for these new limited edition frames coming out in October!
•Phantom 100G (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar)
•Phantom 100G LB LTD (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar and 28”)
•Phantom 107G (updated version on the Phantom w/a crossbar - 21-17mm CTS section)
Albert Murata thanks for the info! I currently use a Phantom 100 and Tour 100 with O ports. I will selling my Wilson Clash 100 for the new prince probably.
@@ChowDownDetroit
Looks like we have the same taste!
Played with the same racquets with some customizations - weight 330g & swingweight 310.
2014-17 Tour 100 w/ string ports at 3:00 & 9:00 and string inserts at 12:00
2017-19 Phantom 100 w/tubing at 11:00-1:00
2020 O3 Phantom 100X w/tubing at 11:00-1:00
Note: I started using the string inserts, then later the tubing to provide a little more feel and make it less muted.
Definitely buy the new O3 Phantom 100X, you'll love it! The Phantom 100X 305 and Phantom 100P are great sticks too, but I keep going back to my faithful O3! :)
Try Pro Kennex, more comfortable than Prince in my experience.
Yep the CTS has a thick rubber undergrip.
The nice thing about this guy’s channel is that he gives great information, and he speaks so slowly that you can comfortably watch his videos on 1.5x speed. Good time saver!
Oh snap. I tried it. Lolololol it legitimately sounds great. 😂
I watch all his videos on 1.5, 😂
I always do 1.75 on this dude
My first “real” racket 💪 Prince Graphite 👍
And I still have mine. 😀
Prince Composite Graphite 110! Used from 1988 thru 2019... Bought a Wilson...and yes ...I still have it...actually have my original and some extras I purchased
I still have mine... And enjoy...
Me as well cost 80 pounds in 1997 expensive at the time in recession times ..
This was fascinating. I'm just getting back into tennis after ~25 years and it's a different world. The last racquet I bought was the Prince CTS Approach 90 (which I proudly still own). Loved that racquet. Back in the day Prince was also a huge innovator in the squash world as well. They were the first to put strings through the throat with their "CTS Extender" if anyone remembers that.
You won't find a better racquet....
I am in the same position myself, I’ve grabbed so many nostalgia racquets off eBay to hit with, really cool and some great memories. Prince cushion grip vortex was a super comfortable grip
I used the Approach 110 to win HS State championship singles.
Prince Graphite is my all time favorite. I remember the brown suede racket bags they came in. #1
I had my stolen when I car stolen and it was in the trunk...I was more upset at losing the racket as I had worked all summer for it...it wasn't cheap...the car was insured.
I remember working in a tennis shop back in the 80s. The prince oversize graphite was 300.00 and The prince Boron was 500.00!!! We always said you were a MORON TO BUY A BORON
I’m loyal (for some reason) to Prince to this day, maybe it’s nostalgia, maybe it cause I was on staff with them up until their bankruptcy and I got out of the tennis industry. A big issue for me was quality control post bankruptcy. I was a fan of the T-22 shoe, but my first pair post bankruptcy was horrible and I haven’t went back. But I’m still out here balling with a Textreme. But early to mid 1990’s Prince was awesome. The whole CTS world of frames. Frames with power and weight. Colorful bags and accessories. Greats stuff. Babolat was brilliant in their American Launch, and that even though a few bells and whistles have changed, a Pure Drive is still a Pure Drive, Aeros are still Aeros.. etc. Some people don’t want to switch every season. You can stick with a line and spec (or super close to it) every season. That’s why Wilson needs to be smart and keep that Clash line as is for awhile, but I guess that doesn’t keep R&D people employed.
Side note- I like how your videos say what I’m thinking as I’m watching it for the first time... the EXO3 Black, the stringing issues... good stuff. I’d love for you to go back and talk about the Wilson Profile line. If you need samples I can send you a couple. It’s an interesting story with that Author and all.
babolat changed the game a lot in creating "lineage" lines. it's sort of how In N Out is successful, making the decision fatigue reduced.
How is prince now?
The Prince Phantom series with Textreme are pretty good. Who knows...maybe Prince is on the comeback trail.
Yes, definitely are! If you're playing with the new Phantom I'm sure you're happy, but look for these new limited edition frames coming out in October!
•Phantom 100G (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar)
•Phantom 100G LB LTD (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar and 28”)
•Phantom 107G (updated version on the Phantom w/a crossbar - 21-17MM CTS section)
I use the prince phantom 93p, its a nice, classic racquet. It reminds me of the head prestige 93
@@bretts5571 I've heard good things about the 93P. Do share if you have tried it back to back with a POG mid.
ALVIN D'EXPLORER I haven’t, it has a box beam so it reminds me of the Wilson 90s and prestige 93
I hope so, but it looks very bad for Prince.
when are you going to come out with the what happened with rossignol rackets video? jk i know people were begging for this one for a while.
My first expensive racquet was a carbon Rossignol back in the mid 80's. Loved that racquet.
Rossignol was a really unique brand.... IIRC Harold solomon and matts Wilander were the most successful to use them.
I was sort of a tennis bum, trying to make a few bucks in Europe from the mid '70's-early '80's ( I was that rarest of breeds, an American that preferred red clay) doing some Bundesliga, ITF, challengers, and qualies. I was having a beer and happened to be sitting next to a Rossignol rep. We hit it off and, for the rest of my fledgling career, supplied me with racquets. First, the Strato (yes, still using wood) and then, the F200C (loved that frame!). So I have a soft spot for Rossignol tennis. Yes, do a video.
You are absolutely so great at telling stories. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of this informative info on Prince!
Prince O3's are the best hybrid rackets I have played with in 20 years of tennis - better than most other brands, esp Wilsons. John Isner still uses Prince and it has remarkable power and stability. It was designed for big hitters and pro tour players. Wilson and Babolat, Yonex have big player endorsements which is why they sell and they market their brands better. Pure drives are good though haven't like a single Wilson yet, lol.
93p user here. Such a great stick
Yup, that's a great player's frame . . . don't you love the old school leather grip! :)
Albert Murata somehow that stick plays so different than the #s would tell you. It doesn’t feel super heavy, it has plenty of spin, control for days, and huge serve power
It's a brilliant stick indeed
played with it the other day and struggled with it, does not fit the modern game at all. i enjoyed playing the backhand slice though
Pam Shriver used the Prince Classic to reach the finals of the US Open. The major reason for the downfall began when Prince was purchased by the Bennetton family. That, coupled with a major decline in participation were the primary cause. Interesting that this was not even mentioned in this overview! The "O" series technology played a minor role in the overall picture. It was an important issue, but not a major reason for the decline.
Technology and innovation have been the cornerstone of the Prince brand DNA since the founding of the company in 1970. It’s been the driving force behind some of the most iconic racquets in the tennis industry.
The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same.
Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Howard Head’s goal from the beginning to help make tennis easier to learn and play better tennis. Prince has a tremendous history on innovation and game improvement and that’s why they still exist as a quality brand.
Decline of tennis? What do you mean decline in participation? Also, why did Bennetton family buy Prince for?
@@scottcha-choe7378 fewer people playing tennis at that time. I'm not sure what the Bennetton family paid for Prince.
You're right, there was a major decline in tennis in the 2000's. It makes sense that at least one company went bankrupt, especially if they were bought out by incompetents.
I recently got back into Tennis, having grown up on Prince, i was devastated to not find them anywhere. A little more digging and i found this video (thanks). I was determined to buy Prince again as it has a cool retro feel, so i went over to tennis warehouse. Happy customer
cheers
I play with the Textreme tour 310 and it’s a great racquet.
They have good raquets but they have, well i thik they have a bad marketing, there are good players with prince but not the best players. I have a prince raquet and i play with it but it´s just ok, but not like the other brands. Right now they are making better desitions.
@@joseberronesgomez440 Technology and innovation have been the cornerstone of the Prince brand DNA since the founding of the company in 1970. It’s been the driving force behind some of the most iconic racquets in the tennis industry.
The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same.
Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Howard Head’s goal from the beginning to help make tennis easier to learn and play better tennis. Prince has a tremendous history on innovation and game improvement and that’s why they still exist as a quality brand.
@@AMstringing Of course I know that prince are the reason for the modern tennis we know and that is why there are the great current brands. But they are no longer the kings of the industry, wilson, babolat, head, yonex and other brands are leaving a very high standard. I repeat they are not bad rackets, they are excellent, but it is not the prince of 10 years ago. And you tell me data from the United States, what about the rest of the world. The only rackets I've seen prince outside of the US are old or very rare 1 out of 30 if not 1 out of 50 players. I'm telling you, I play with prince but prince is no longer the same in today's market. I wish prince could get out of this and go back to being the king of tennis. Regards.
@@joseberronesgomez440 Thanks for your reply! The new 2020 Phantom line is awesome. Old school thin beam and feel enhanced with modern technology!
Also, look for these new limited edition frames coming out in October!
•Phantom 100 Graphite (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar)
•Phantom 100 Graphite LB LTD (updated version of the Phantom 100P w/a crossbar and 28”)
•Phantom 107 Graphite (updated version on the Phantom w/a crossbar - 21-17mm CTS section)
José Berrones Gómez I agree. Poor marketing and aesthetics. They need newer strategies to appeal to the younger public
Woodie in middle school, spectrum 90 in high school and graphite in college. Great memories
I've been with Prince since the 70's starting with the original Classic! The Woodie is my all time favorite strung with natural gut! :)
Playing with Phantom Textreme 100x (305g) and it is such a great racquet!!!
Hello Mr. Spin! I think Carlos Moya used the Soft Drive 1994
I think you mean, the racquet formerly known as Prince
I play with Prince Textreme Beast 100 and it is truly a beast. Soft on the arm but with lots of power, spin and control.The sound it makes on contact with the ball is just amazing!
I play with the beast 98 and yess it is definitely a beast! Love the rarer 16x20 string pattern
Thanks for answering this! I love my Prince racquet and was disappointed when a number of vendors stopped selling Prince racquets. I think TW is the only retailer that sells racquets in the US.
In addition to Tennis Warehouse, Prince products can be purchased at retail and pro shops around the country in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Thanks for this video super informative..... would appreciate if you could do one one “Dunlop”..... i knew they were awesome for a long time then they sort of faded out..... and. Now they are back.... sort of
Would like to hear your take on the brand “pro kennex” too.
Thanks again for the videos
Yeah .. I miss the Biomimetic Series ... 400Tour .. the cosmetics were beautiful too .. with the Bioskin !
People say more grand slams have been won with dunlop rackets than any other brand.... wonder if that statement is still true.... doesn’t feel like it
I also wonder what happened to Dunlop, good suggestion!
I still use the Biometric 400 , great racquet, easy on the elbow. They always have a following in England, but they come out with so many models it is hard to keep up.
Really appreciate you taking the time to make such an interesting and well-done video.
By just having TW has the distributor, Prince losses a lot of users. A lot people prefer seeing racquets in person at a store. I prefer buying my racquets from my local store because they can make my money instead on an online shop.. I like to keep my local tennis shop around since I go there to restring my (and my sons) racquets.
I guess it depends where you live, but Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Depending where you live, Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Dicks sporting goods stores carry Prince racquets.
I almost kinda have to add to the History of the Babolat entrance...just cause people argue I have dementia... and I don't really. I was "training" in Paris in 1998-1999 with a 12-13 year old Rafa Nadal and Babolat let me try their prototype that was not usta approved because I was in Europe, playing there. And I did so well with it, they let me keep it, but I brought it back to the US and I beat Andy Roddick with it and usta officials got all confused, because I was 16 and he was 18 about to turn pro, and Babolat got contacted and Tony Nadal had to come to my hometown take it from me...
Spike Lee only used Prince racquets and told me in an elevator "you killed Prince" and I was like what? He was like "The racquet... " because Roddick told him I was the reason he wanted to use that racquet. He was going to use Wilson though.
Prince was at Roland Garros when Babolat was testing their racquets, Prince knew they needed to spend more in r&d but from testing with pros and jrs at Roland Garros, and I'd bet others, they knew they were done with racquets.
Rafa killed Prince Racquets, it was kinda, who ever builds Rafa's raquet, or Novaks, would be in the racquet game. I do remember Prince representatives being sorta sad and saying they're not really a tennis company anymore, in 1999.
Vintage Prince owners crew checking in
I feel ya Bro 🤣🤣🤣
Prince's revamp is a blessing in disguise. They're developing racquets with tons of feel, and no hype. The 2018 Prince Phantom 93p is easily my favorite racquet since the original Head Prestige Classic. Definitely not for everyone, but I recommend it for hitters looking for a more traditional feeling players stick.
Agree . . . that's a true player's stick. Any racquet that comes with a leather grip is saying something! Have you tried the 2020 Phantom 93P? Just wondered how you felt about the added Twaron?
@@AMstringing I have not, although I'm really curious. I suspect it brings the sweetspot a little higher where it needed it from the first iteration. Please let me know if you get a chance to hit with it...
@@JernEye Yup, will do.
love my Phantom 97P
I loved my spectrum comp circa 1990..the white one...
Played with Beast 98 for couple of years loved it, its excellent with Volkl Cyclone 16
Anyone remember the triple threat series? Graphite, diablo and rebel were awesome racquets
diablo mid - played the best tennis of my life with it
Yes, there a bunch of great Triple Threat frames!
If you liked the Diablo Mid 93, you'll probably like the new Phantom 93P. It looks like it came out of the same mold! Only thing is that you'll have to decided between the 16x18 or 18x20. The Diablo had an unusual 16x20 pattern.
@@AMstringing Same with the triple threat graphite mid, its 16x20 (i still have it ;). Currently I really like the Wilson blade, wouldn't mind demoing one of the Phantom 93Ps tho
@@chuckharris4855 Great, I don't suppose you live in Hawaii? I'm a Prince dealer on Oahu and would be happy to string up a demo for you. If not, Tennis Warehouse has a great demo program and I hope you can get your hands on one!
@@AMstringing That's why I am using the beast 98, both solid beam and port version. I think I grew out of those hefty mids.
Pam Shriver used the PRINCE CLASSIC !!! WITH THE GREEN THROAT !! COME ON BRO😖
I remember the prince woodie😂. Today I have a Beast 100. Pretty good racket and is powerful.
Great explanation but you left one thing out… had Prince sponsored Federer or Nadal it would not have disappeared. They lost Agassi to Head… and that wasn’t easy to deal with.
Wilson had Connors, then Sampras, then Federer…
They get paid zillions because people (specially youngsters) want to imitate their idols.
Babolat did a great job with that… Prince did a terrible job at that. I was sponsored by Prince at some point and they started offering less merchandise, less money (I wasn’t getting money myself but friends did)… so all this plus everything you explained killed Prince.
oddly enough Pete Sampras married Bridget Wilson
God knows we all love to play with ourselves without other persons 🤣👍🏻
I've hit over 50K balls from this very Prince ball machine in 1984 Good times
fantastic historical lesson from Prince Corp!! grew up with Price in the 80´s and 90´s...An equity firm can not run Prince!! :)) cheers from Argentina
Interesting perspective Harry. My first racket in High School was the aluminum alloy Head Master, and later I played with a Prince Pro. Much later when I got back into Tennis I tried a Babolat and ended up choosing a Prince "O3" racket after testing a few. I decided to start stringing my own rackets, so I started on the "O3" rackets and never had much trouble, perhaps because I read the instructions and selected a machine that had a table lock and skipped all the weird techniques. Never had to bore a grommet, the frames are marked for the tie-off points, at least for the Tour 100's I have. "O3" rackets can also be strung 50/50 on the crosses which avoids the port issues. Seems like less of an issue than many other strange grommet layouts and one piece stringing - problems that lots of other popular rackets manage to survive. One piece stringing is perhaps the problem, some rackets are just not well suited for it. I never string one piece anyway, usually want a hybrid or a different tension in the crosses, and many tournaments and pros avoid one piece. I suspect it wasn't so much the stringers, but there were many other issues at a higher corporate level and more competition from other manufacturers that started some business transactions and bad decisions that damaged the company and caused the majority of the problems. Sad to see it, hope TW can bring them back. Thanks for your fun videos.
Demo'd a handful of racquets after playing with an o3 speedport tour in 2007. Landed with the Phantom 93p. It's an incredible players racquet!
If you're a fan of heavier, smaller sticks. Don't overlook it!
If I were a stronger player, without should issues, I’d be using the 93p. Is amazing, but my shoulder just can’t handle it past 30 minutes.
I loved my Prince “Woodie”;the best !
Yes, strung with natural gut was the best combination . . . ORGANIC too!
I still remember Jay Berger playing on tour with his old aluminium Prince frames whilst everyone else was playing with graphite etc
Berger strung it ridiculously tight too.
@@tedneanderthal7373 whatever happened to him? Did he just quit and never go back or did he end up going into coaching?
@@TheBigBlue22 Berger is now a tennis coach. www.tennis.com/pro-game/2017/12/jay-berger-fulfilled-steve-flink/70856/
Very interesting story. I have owned some of them and I have strung quite a few. My favourite racquet (until the Wilson Pro Staff) was the Original Prince Graphite(107). What a racquet(still going on to this day)! But you've got to be in a very good shape to play with this stick. Memories....
Bro make a video playing with the giant racket and those giant balls people ask for signatures on
CTS Response mid plus and Thunderstick 90 are still in the basement. Thunderstick had crazy power.
I have been playing Prince for 10-15 years now, first just by chance finding a Prince on clearance, then later because they make some of the most arm friendly racquets on the market. I purposely went to a local pro shop for my first one but then couldn't find any locally, maybe now I know why. I have since added two Phantom 100s and I love them. No more problems with tennis elbow, although I also went to a longer swing using more shoulder.
I was thinking about this the other day. They’re still making decent rackets but I don’t see many tour players endorsed by Prince. Is it just a marketing budget decision?
i still don't understand why Prince with big holes are tough to string...could you re-string one and show us the problems ?
The prince pro phantoms are fantastic racquets. I suggest trying them out.
That theory is not true, Luxlion string is not be stringing friendly to the racket-stringer but why it is so popular in the field? The downfalls of Prince are due to the acquisitions in the past two decades to a variety of different firms that those firms were not really enthusiastic to invest in the tennis business, particular in decrease spending the sponsorships to top pro players who supposed to enhance the brand awareness but the acquisitions contributed their firms' shares appreciation in the stock market. It's all about the resource and strategy of marketing, not about the preference from racket-stringers.
I agree. The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same.
Prince is on a comeback!
The teams from Tennis Warehouse and Dick’s Sporting Goods here in the US market have been working to regain their place in the wholesale market.
Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Prince has really done a spectacular job with the Phantom line. I currently use the 2020 Phantom 100p and its a really solid and spectacular frame that has a nice balance of power and control. It's also quite arm friendly and plays well with a synthetic string.
Yup, nice classic thin box beam! I play with the 2020 O3 Phantom 100, but can easily play with the Phantom 100X or Phantom 100P too!
I demoed that racket from tennis warehouse and I'm seriously considering switching to that one from my yonex core 330.
@@hellohello-yi8yr The 100P is really a solid racquet with a great balance of power and control! It's really one of best point and shoot frames! Easy targeting for flat, topspin and slice! I highly recommend you making the switch!
@@hellohello-yi8yr Great!
Here's a tip that I recommend to my customers when demoing racquets.
Never go by first impression, while you're in that honeymoon stage with a new racquet.
Play with it at least 3-4 times:
#1 - Have someone feed you balls or hit on a ball machine. This will give you an opportunity to breakdown all your strokes and by repetition feel how the racquet behaves in your hand.
#2 - Hit with someone and play some structured points. This will allow you to tailor game-like situations and what the racquet would feel like in competition.
#3 - Play a set or a practice match. This will allow you to feel if you can trust the racquet in pressure situations.
@@AMstringing Thank you
The original Prince Oversize was 110 square inches for years. Pam Shriver used the original green throat model for her 1978 US Open Semi run... Monica Seles also played the Graphite...Prince at one point sold more racquets than the next two companies combined...Dominant Brand. Michael Chang helped develop the LongBody racquet ( with Steve Davis Designer ). I served on the National Teaching Pro Advisory Staff for Prince for 12 years, starting in 1984. I was a play tester for every new model ( even some prototypes ) during that time. if you have any specific questions what happened to PRINCE, send me a message.
very interesting, you shoudl do a video
It's a video against Prince.
It's pathetic.
Informative! Thank you. I am a stringer, yes, it is a pain in the butt to string, but I don't mind stringing them for myself. However, it is not a racquet I want to string on the regular!
However, I still play with EXO3 White and still loving it!
Interesting points. I had the Prince Pro, Graphite Original OS, Mid, Mono, O3, Diablo, and now playing with Phantom 100G. I love their shoes too but now almost impossible to but in here in HK. Had my share of Wilson, Volkl, Fischer, YY, Technifiber and Head too. I couldn't play with any Babalot racket, too thick and the balance always felt strange to me.
I see prince doing now what babolat did in 2000. At least in my country, prince gives out the most number of racquet sponsorships by a long shot. You go to a tournament you'll see more prince than anything else. They are trying to build strong grassroots marketing. But I also see many coaches not recommendeding prince because they played during the X03 days.
That's interesting to hear! What country are you from?
@@AMstringing India
@@homosapien5156 Thanks for your reply!
That Prince with the bridge on the throat was their best racquet... but the O3 killed Prince, the company... flawed concept, they were trying to become the Apple of tennis racquets and got burned, what you gained in a bigger sweet spot was lost in power from the big O's. The heyday was the 90's, I saw Chang actually hit a 120mph serve with the extended version, good for him. Oh well, pride commeth before the fall.
Technology and innovation have been the cornerstone of the Prince brand DNA since the founding of the company in 1970. It’s been the driving force behind some of the most iconic racquets in the tennis industry, from the first oversized tennis racquet to the first extended length tennis racquet and more recently with technologies like O3.
The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same.
Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
Very insightful, thanks. I'd like to add that Prince stubbornly stuck w the rectangular thin beam aesthetic, even with their thunder series, while's Babolat thicker oval/diamond beam delivered the power that polyester strings needed. Also, after the Prince 710 OS (the OS Rafter racquet), it literally took me 8 or 9 racquets to find one with the same feel albeit with more power. I went thru the ThunderLite 105 (no control), the more DB OS & MP (no feel AND no power, what's the point)? More control I think (super slim silver frame,). That POS went a decade back in time, bone jarring stiffness and no control nor power. It was one horrible playing racquet after another. I finally found my stride in the AIR DB, but the frames were so old that they completely lost power. All of the square holes thru the body were horrible. No control, too dampened. In the end they made one horrible racquet after another. I was loyal to Prince for over 20 years but once I started playing with Head & Dunlops I sold all my Prince. I only have their shiny orange bag now.
@tennisspin can you do a video of spaghetti stringing a racket?
I like these new type of videos! Keep it up!
Used and stiil have the M.CHANG graphite, then to Exo3 Tour 100. Then just recently went to the Pure Strike 16x19.
jonlsl Pure Strike gave me tennis elbow.
You left out Marion Bartoli winning Wimbledon with an Prince Exo3 ....
I was introduced to Prince just about when the Exo3 line were introduced . And I must say . It was incredible . I bought the Ignite 95 Exo3 , developed tennis elbow and subsequently went through a whole lot of other Brand’s with variance to swing weight , balance etc . And after around 15years ... have come back to my Ignite 95 Exo3 . I can’t play with anything else without those open ports .
But you have to admit that the company was innovative . Even their dampener is unique.
Technology and innovation have been the cornerstone of the Prince brand DNA since the founding of the company in 1970. It’s been the driving force behind some of the most iconic racquets in the tennis industry.
The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same.
If you like the thinner beam frames, check out the Phantom line. Very comfortable playing frames with the old school look and feel, enhanced with modern technology!
Speaking about the Double Bridge dampener, did you know the CTS Synergy DB26 will be reintroduced in late August? It's part of Prince’s 50th anniversary celebration!
Check out this podcast.
ua-cam.com/video/Rhe4oNFhnPg/v-deo.html
Albert Murata hey thanks for sharing ... appreciate it !
Also I left out that their iconic P racquet face stencil has a blanked out bar that cuts through the letter . It just dawned on me that place on the stencil that is blanked out .. is where the sweet spot is ... perhaps so that the stencil ink doesn’t affect the strings ? Or that’s the first place where the stencil ink would fade off .....
@@chowchichang2922 Yeah, it's funny how some players would leave that part blank? Always wondered it was a fashion thing, or just didn't know that part was supposed to be inked in after? :)
The Prince CTS Approach 110 was the best racquet ever made. I still have six of them. Had a nice thin throat, but a wider frame at the top. Great stability and very powerful. Quite heavy, but overall the best racquet I have ever used. And lots of players used the Prince Pro. I remember when Peter Doohan beat Boris Becker in the 2nd round of the 1987 Wimbledon. Doohan used the Prince Pro. Prince defined 80's tennis. Sad to see them decline. Great video!
DAMN RIGHT!!
I now use the Prince CTS Oversize Approach from 88. I am USPTA pro and have tried hundreds of racquets. The CTS models have a thick rubber grip over the handle which dampens shocks immensely. This is the only oversized racquet I could even play with.
@@guruofendtimes819 Nice. Absolutely right. Dampens shock, incredibly stable at the top of the racquet for players who hit high on the racquet, rubber grip over the handle, powerful, the throat just sits well in the hands. Prince CTS Approach 110! Thanks for the great comment.
Did the exo port key allow for normal stringing?? I ordered the wrong one years ago and never even got to use one. I used the brake on my stringer...
There were a couple of port key sizes. If you had the proper key size, the racquet could be strung without using the brake. However, I found it just as easy and faster to use brake when pulling the crosses that required it.
@@AMstringing oh. ok thx
POG Mid....14x18 string pattern....one of the best rackets made
I concur. Still play with one of those alongside a modern Wilson Pro Staff RF.
Yes, that one is a classic :) You should check out the new Phantom 93P (14x18). Nice thin beam and leather grip!
www.tennis-warehouse.com/Prince_Phantom_93P_14x18/descpageRCTWABG-P1493P.html
POG mid was before my time but diablo mid is my GOAT racquet
@tennis spin Can you tell us how Prince USA is different than Prince Japan? Are they both owned by the same equity firm or are they completely separate from each other?
Japan has their own license and works with ABG, like Tennis Warehouse in the U.S. Japan does have more input regarding racquet design. Recently, the Twistpower X100 was added to the Prince line which is originally a Japan licensee design. Check it out here: ua-cam.com/video/6rVg8Z9zaXI/v-deo.html
Prince as a brand has not experienced the “turmoil” overseas it has in the U.S., which may explain why Japan have so many more products. Considering the state of the business here between 2012-2016, Prince is rebuilding what once was in the U.S.
I've owned and used a lot of rackets and brands and currently use a prince phantom pro 100p it's incredible.. don't sleep on this brand people .. I also own the Wilson clash which is ok but not in the same league as that phantom..in my opinion
Yes, agreed. Nice traditional box beam design. Have you tried the 2020 Phantom 100P with Twaron? Just wondering if you noticed the difference?
www.tennis-warehouse.com/Prince_Phantom_100P/descpageRCTWABG-PPP10.html
I remember also the Prince Woody. Only the grey hairs used it. Maybe because it was expensive and bigger than a large pizza. I also remember when the first Prince Graphite came out and Glickstein used it to hit insanely fast serves. The first time I hit with the Prince Graphite I was blown away by its power. It was too expensive for most of us at that time. Now hardly anyone knows the Prince name. I wanted a Prince when I got back into tennis, but Bobolats were better. I tried the Prince, Wilson, Yonex, Head, etc. None of them felt as sweet as the Bobolat PureDrive. I guess their design leap-frogged the others somehow.
Major (played by Leconte, now bac via Tecnifibre, after many years), Dunlop (Haas, Anderson), Völkl (all Russian players in the 80s and 90s), Fischer (Stich and Bagdatis, now Pacific) Estusa (Becker), ProKennex… Many brands have only a minor piece of the cake now, when they’re not dead.
I owned and operated a a tennis shop in San Diego for 32 years (retired two years ago). This is a good video explaining why Prince went bankrupted. There is a little more to the story. First many viewers of the channel need to understand how big tennis was in the late 80's and early 90's. Wilson OWNED the tennis racquet market in the early 90's, close to 45% of all racquet sales in the US. This was close to $150M in sales (just racquets), today the top brands of Babolat and Wilson both make close to $25M each. In 1990 US racquet sales was near $250M, today the total US business is under $80M. All sports including tennis have decreased in play, big time. Prince did have a roller coaster ride starting in the 70's. Prince was sold around 2000 to several investors at a good price. Around 2007 Prince was again at the top the sales chart with the "O" racquet series. This group of investors sold it to another group of buyers at a huge profit, selling the company close to $100M. This is when tennis took another huge hit in actual number of peopling playing the sport. Prince had the #1 selling shoe for years, the T-22. Rumors had the company owing a large sums of money to an Asian production company that would no longer fabricate their shoes until the money owed was paid. Prince couldn't pay the loan so Prince moved production to Vietnam where new molds were required. Along with material changes the new molds changed the fit of the shoe. I would say Prince lost over 50% of their shoe sales because of this move. It forced our customers to find other shoes. Over time Prince sales dropped significantly and the cost of money over several years forced Prince to file bankruptcy. I'm not sure the exact number but rumors have the Prince licencing fee worth less $1M a year. Prince is now a TW house brand.
The Prince brand distribution model has undergone significant changes over the years. But the core brand operations, such as product development, has remained the same.
For the past 1.5 years they have been working with the teams from Tennis Warehouse and Dick’s Sporting Goods to be the licensees and distribution partners here in the US market and have been working to regain their place in the wholesale market.
Prince has been growing in retail and pro shops around the country over the past year and now have a presence in markets like: Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Palm Desert, San Jose, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Little Rock, Denver, Raleigh, Richmond, Charlotte, Asheville, Memphis, Nashville, Chicago, Hilton Head, Jacksonville, Boca Raton, Naples, St. Louis, Charlottesville, Alexandria, Hawaii, and more!
CTS was the best series.Rubber undergrip:
Watching this video in 2023. I knew when he got to his explanation it wasn't the full picture. Like come on, tennis store stringers was the reason the company failed?
Thank you for explaining the rest of the story! Had to scroll too far.
getting endorsement by famous players is the most important. babolat and wilson won't be the best selling racket companies without pros like federer, nadal, sampras, serena williams, etc. other than the bryan brothers, the players who endorsed prince just wasn't able to make it big because of the big 4 dominating the competition, and not a lot of people really watch tennis for the doubles. if federer was using a prince racket, they would still be top selling rackets today, but then again, i think federer using wilson was because he idolized sampras as a child
Thought Becker and Edberg were his childhood heroes.
@@semidios3994 he has quite a few, and sampras is definitely 1 of his favorites. he confirmed that during an interview after the match against sampras at madison square garden. he was even using the same racket model as sampras at the start of his pro career. the legendary pro staff 85
@@kcazzzzz Yeah I belive Edberg was also a pro staff 85 user. I would like to find that interview, thanks for sharing.
@@semidios3994 you mean the interview after the match with sampras? see the link below
ua-cam.com/video/VL2vqs8eeWo/v-deo.html
@@kcazzzzz It doesn't matter, he was already playing with a wilson Ps 85 racquet before Sampras was famous
So how did the head movement come about?
Good job on the history lesson of Prince although there are a couple of edits I would add. It was the 78 Open and she played with the Classic, not the Pro. Pam first began playing the Classic back in her epic battles with Elise Bergin in the juniors in the MALTA section. The Prince Classic took her serve and volley to the next level. Nobody hit top back then and her cupped, under slice forehand was a perfect match for that aluminum frame. She ALWAYS hit slice backhands and I think the Classic made it easier for her to keep the ball deep. She wanted to do one thing: get to the net and once there... game over. Cross Keys and Columbia Tennis Barn coaches like Lew Gerrard, Steve Krulevitz and I guess Candy? (never saw him) would drill into the MALTA juniors "take that short ball, drive it to a corner and get to the net". Pam was a master at it. MALTA tennis was strong back in the day with Shriver, Bergin and Baltimore Jr. Davis Cuppers like Jimmy Hodges, Rodney Harmon, Dek Potts but NONE of them would seriously consider the new OS frames. I remember one coach yelling
"dont even bring one of those snowshoes to practice because if you NEED that, then you don't belong here...they are a fad and won't last, so don't bother!" lol, little did he know. . .didn't we hear that same thing about that strange thing called...the snowboard? lol. I still play my POGOS. They're enjoyable for the first 30 minutes and then I'm reminded why they call my division "Seniors" and I swap out for a lighter friendlier version..oddly enough it's a Head Radical Microgel OS. Keep going Prince and thanks again for your educational video.
From 13:00, the content is a joke. All stringers should be humble enough to read the stringing instructions before stringing an O3, or Exo3. They did have a stringing manual for stringers. They didnt bother to read thinking they are more than capable to string any racquet without reading. Absolute cocky. 50-50. Heard of it? Go try stringing a PowerAngle without going through the online instructions.