Synthetic Guts and Glory

La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club tennis pro MATT PREVIDI was the lead stringer for the tournament. Previdi had a passion for stringing rackets which was apparent during the tournament.


Q: You started stringing rackets Thursday evening and now it is noon on Saturday, how many rackets have you strung so far?

PREVIDI: 45 rackets total.


Q: Wow, that's quite a few rackets... On average, how long does it take you to string just one racket?

PREVIDI: The actual stringing only takes about 15-18 minutes, but from the time I get the racket to the time I hand the racket back to the person it takes about 20-25 minutes because of setup. One of the biggest misconceptions about stringing is speed, as in, 'How fast can you string it for me?' What actually matters is consistency. You want to be able to pull out one of your rackets from your bag and have it be the same as the other ones in your bag.


Q: Tell me about the rackets, strings, and other info that you have come across from the tournament.

PREVIDI: Most players, I'd say about 80%, bring their own string. About 60% use one string for the whole racket and the other 40% or so use hybrids (more than one string per racket). Also, about a third of the rackets I have restrung for the tournament did not have broken strings to begin with, they just wanted a fresh set. The lowest tension I have strung at so far is 48 lbs. and the highest I have strung so far is at 71 lbs.


Q: What are the most popular string and racket you have seen in the tournament?

PREVIDI: The most popular racket is the Babolat Pure Drive and the most popular string is Luxilon.


Q: Which team has had the most rackets restrung so far?

PREVIDI: Stanford, with about 11 rackets so far.


Q: Tell me some basics about tension, what does lower tension versus higher tension mean?

PREVIDI: A lower tension strings have more of a trampoline affect, the ball will travel farther. A higher tension controls more of where the ball goes as far as distance. And actually there is a huge misconception that there is a big difference between five or even 10 lbs. There was a double blind study done where they had people hit with a racket strung at 40 lbs. and with a racket at 80 lbs. and most people couldn't tell a difference.