Say hello to one of 2006's best new racquets. The Prince O3 White is a powerful new frame that raises the performance standards for the midplus racquet category known to as 'tweeners. It has the versatility to work well for competitive players with intermediate skills and above � all the way to the pro tour.
|
The Prince O3 White was developed with the participation of 20+ male and female touring pros, including Maria Sharapova. Not coincidentally, the O3 White made its debut with Sharapova at the 2006 Australian Open. (She advanced to the semifinals for the second year in a row.)

As Maria would want, the O3 White hits big from the baseline with plenty of spin. Power, comfort, and stability were strong in the first impressions of our intermediate play testers. Serving is not quite as spectacular because the O3 White requires a little more than average head speed to serve productively.

The reason is stability. Stability is much more of a highlight than the specs suggest. This is a middle weight racquet that swings with a relatively weighty feel and hits with rock solid stability. This is ideal for physically strong intermediate and advanced players that prepare early and hit on the rise. Likewise, the O3 White negotiates volleys in an unshakable manner. Doubles poachers will appreciate the way the O3 White helps them confidently put away hard hit service returns and groundstrokes. There is no rattle and rarely any sensation of torque.

Most racquet companies choose to bias players� frames for touch and feel at the expense of comfort. The O3 White is just the opposite. Its cushioned shot response nicely complements the generous sweet spot and lively string bed. This is the promise of O3 technology at its best. Our intermediate play testers loved it! It brought mixed reactions from others with 4.5+ skills, although some of them loved it too. In general, the softer feel of the O3 White works well for aggressive hitting; less well for touch, angles and finesse

Though there are other midplus racquets that swing easier and offer better feel, the O3 White will be one of 2006�s best sellers because of its strengths and good qualities: power, stability, comfort, and control. �As soon as I picked up the racquet, it felt right,� says endorser Sharapova in a Prince press release. A lot of our play testers had the same reaction.

Consider this a top prospect for any performance-oriented player looking for a 'tweener upgrade to get the most out of their game. Also excellent for intermediates who like the stability of players' frames but want more power.