Wilson Pro Staff 90 vs RF97

As I discussed in my article on the Roger Federer Racket, Roger used a Wilson Pro Staff 90 from 2003 until he switched to the Wilson Pro Staff RF97 Autograph in early 2014.

Roger had great success with the Pro Staff 90, winning 17 of his 20 grand slam singles titles using this frame but in 2014 Roger decided that he needed a racket with a bigger head size if he was to continue to compete at the highest level.

In this article, I will look at the main differences between Roger’s old Pro Staff 90 and his new RF97

Wilson Pro Staff 90 vs RF97 Comparison

Racket Specs

Although the two rackets share many similarities e.g. 27in racket length, head light balance, and a 16 x 19 string pattern, there are still some major differences between the two frames that cause them to play very differently.

The most obvious difference between the Pro Staff 90 (or “PS90”) and the Pro Staff RF97 (or “RF97”) is their head sizes, which is one of the main reasons Roger made the switch as the bigger head size he has with his new RF97 allows him to stay in points for longer as it is a lot more forgiving than his old PS90.

Another big difference is the beam width of the two tennis rackets, with the PS90 being four inches thinner than the RF97.

The thinner beam width on the PS90 means it will be much harder to generate power on your shots and you will need good technique to have any chance of hitting winners with this racket.

In terms of weight, this isn’t a huge difference with the PS90 having a slightly lower strung and swing weight when compared with Roger’s new racket.

The two rackets also have similar frame stiffness ratings at 66 for the PS90 and 68 for the RF97.

PS90	vs	RF97
2003-2013	Years used by Fed:	2014-2022
	Design:
90in	Head Size:	97in
27in	Length:	27in
354g (12.49oz)	Strung Weight:	357g (12.59oz)
8 pts HL	Balance:	9 pts HL
325g	Swingweight:	333g
66 RA	Stiffness:	68 RA
17.5mm	Beam Width:	21.5mm
Graphite/Kevlar/BLX	Composition:	Braided Graphite
White / Red	Colors:	Black
16 Mains / 19 Crosses	String Pattern:	16 Mains / 19 Crosses
21.5- 26.5kg / 48-58 pounds	String Tension Range:	22-27kg / 50-60 pounds
Check Price on Pro Stock Tennis	Price:	Check Price on Amazon

Why did Roger Federer switch to the RF97?

There were a number of different reasons why Roger Federer made the switch including:

1. He wanted a more forgiving tennis racket

With his older rackets (PS90 and PS85), Roger used to hit a lot of shanked balls as the sweet spot on these rackets was very small.

The RF97 with its bigger head size and sweet spot helped Roger to reduce the number of shanked balls he hit in a match.

2. To help improve his consistency on his backhand side

Before he made the switch to the RF97, many opponents e.g Nadal would attack his backhand side as they knew this was Roger’s weaker side and he was more likely to make an error off his backhand side.

Once he made the switch to the RF97, Roger’s backhand was much less of a weakness as he was better able to deal with high balls hit to his backhand.

This was illustrated beautifully when he beat his long time rival Rafael Nadal at the 2017 Australian Open.

3. To help him get more power on his serves

Although Roger’s serve was always a strength throughout his career, the bigger head size and the thicker beam width of the RF97 helped him get more power on his serves.

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