Yonex Percept 97H Review

Written by: Jonas Eriksson | September 20, 2023

The Yonex Percept 97H is the heaviest racquet in Yonex’ new control line Percept. Here is our Yonex Percept 97H Review.

Yonex Percept 97H Review

The Yonex Percept 97H is one of the heaviest racquets on the market. It falls right after the Wilson Pro Staff RF97 Autograph with its 330-gram unstrung weight versus the 340 grams of the Pro Staff. I compare these two racquets here. The Percept 97H has the same mold as the VCORE Pro 97H, but the layup is slightly different as it includes a new technology called Servo Filter, which is supposed to filter out vibrations. You can read more about this in my general Yonex Percept post.

In terms of specifications, they have reduced the average swing weight of the 97H model. This is a good idea. The VCORE Pro 97H I tested had a strung swing weight of 347. This is pro-level specs, while the Percept 97H I received came around 334 SW when measured on my HEAD 3-in-1 machine. The 330-ish strung swing weight is relatively “beefy” but more manageable than the previous one.

Below, you can see the average specifications, courtesy of Tennis Warehouse.

Specifications

Head Size: 97 in / 625.81 cm
Length: 27in / 68.58cm
Strung Weight:12.2oz / 346g
Balance: 12.59in / 31.98cm / 7 pts HL
Swingweight: 333
Stiffness: 62
Beam Width: 21mm / 21mm / 21mm
Composition: NAMD-2G/H.M.Graphite
Power Level: Low
Stroke Style: Full
Swing Speed: Fast
Racquet Colors:Mint
Grip Type: Yonex Synthetic
String Pattern:

16 Mains / 19 Crosses
Mains skip: 8T,8H
Two Pieces
No Shared Holes

How does it play?

The Yonex Percept 97H can create a heavy ball and offers great stability. It does this at the cost of maneuverability and the ability to hit with high racquet head speeds. It’s quite an extreme racquet in terms of weight, but it will appeal to strong players who like hefty racquets and perhaps players who have always played with heavy racquets and are looking for a modern option.

The target group is small, but if you fit it, this racquet works well. It’s comfortable and offers decent spin potential and a good level of control. You might want to choke up a bit on the handle at the net to make it easier to move around.

A very specific racquet, but a great one for the player who looks for a hefty control racquet.

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2 comments

Jonas Eriksson

Jonas has been known as "tennis nerd" mainly for his obsessing about racquets and gear. Plays this beautiful sport almost every day.