It is a very difficult challenge to get a new tennis racket. I was so used to my old racket that any proposed change brought anxiety and apprehension. I was still using a racket that was first produced in 1991.
Especially in my case, I am troubled with 30 years of tennis elbow and am extremely sensitive to any changes.
I tried innumerable rackets which always hurt my arm. I went to multiple orthopedic surgeons and physical therapists to resolve the pain. The physical therapists were always able to return me to play, and the orthopedist said that even though I needed Tommy John surgery (like the pitchers), I was too old to recover from the surgery.
Eventually, I found a Pro Kennex 5g which I used for 20 years which did not hurt my arm. Even though the sweet spot in miniscule, I am afraid to change.
Finally, I thought that new technology and 30 years of research would find a better racket that would give me some help. Note _ I am a senior 3.5 with real strokes.
I asked the Tennis Bros for their advice and they recommended three rackets and 2 different string set ups. The recommendations seemed to be thoughtful, and matched the scientific literature on rackets that would minimize shock to the arm: heavy, flexible, soft stringbed. Please refer to Technical Tennis by Rod Cross and Crawford Lindsay for further information.
I demoed each of the recommended rackets and finally chose one along with the appropriate string setup. This combo works really well and I think I finally have a modern racket that has a huge sweetspot that can help my game.
Thanks much, Tennis Bros.