We test strings and racquets the way they're actually used — in real matches, over weeks, with the same equipment and the same hands. What you read here is what held up.
The tennis gear industry runs on hype. New strings launch every season with marketing copy that recycles the same three adjectives — bite, control, comfort — and most reviews online repeat those adjectives back without testing them. The reader is left with a confident-sounding paragraph that says nothing useful.
We started tennisyard because we wanted a publication we'd actually rely on — one that would tell us whether a string holds tension past hour fifteen, whether a racquet's "improved feel" actually translates to match play, and whether the latest spin technology is something or nothing.
Every piece of gear that earns a review here gets put through the same testing cycle. We hit with it. We string identical frames. We log hours. We track tension. We play matches. Then we score it on eight metrics, and we say what we'd buy.
If a string is bad, we say so. If a racquet doesn't suit a particular style, we say that too. We don't run paid placements, and we don't grade on a curve. The goal is a publication that respects your time and your wallet.
Brands do not pay us to be reviewed, and they cannot influence a score. The order of recommendations in our buying guides is determined by testing data, not commercial relationships.
No first-impression review will ever be published as the final word. Every string is played for a minimum of 20 hours; every racquet for at least 15 hours of practice and competitive play.
Equipment is tested in actual matches, not just hitting sessions. How a string behaves in the fifth set tells you more than how it behaves in the first ten minutes.
Every review includes what the product does poorly. If we can't find a meaningful negative, we keep testing until we do — or until we're satisfied it's genuinely class-leading.
Reviews get re-tested when products are refreshed or when we have new data. Update dates are shown on every page. Old scores don't sit forever pretending to be current.
When we publish a buying guide, every product on the list earned its spot. We will never pad a list to hit a number. A guide of four strings is a guide of four strings.
The full protocol used for every string and racquet that reaches a published review. Open, repeatable, and worth criticizing.
String reviews are conducted in a consistent reference frame. For our primary string testing, that's a Babolat Pure Aero 98 (16×19) for spin-oriented evaluation, and a Wilson Blade V10 (18×20) for control-oriented evaluation. Two of each frame are kept in rotation to allow simultaneous comparisons.
Stringing is performed on a Stringway ML140 constant-pull machine, calibrated weekly against a reference weight. Tension is measured with an ERT 300 digital tensiometer at strung, after first hitting session, and weekly thereafter.
Every polyester is tested at three reference tensions (22kg, 23kg, 24kg) within its sensible playing range. Multifilaments and natural gut are tested at 23kg, 24kg, and 25kg. This is critical because a string's character changes meaningfully with tension — a single-tension review is incomplete.
Comparative scores are reported at the optimal tension for each string, with a footnote on how the string behaved across the tension range.
Every string job is logged. Hours played, type of session (practice vs. match), conditions, and ambient temperature are all recorded. We aim for a minimum of 20 hours of play per string before the review is written, with most reviews drawing on 25–40 hours.
This is the single biggest difference between our reviews and most others. Polys behave very differently at hour 25 than they do at hour 5, and the marketing-spec story rarely survives the full life cycle.
After the testing cycle, each string is scored on eight metrics: power, spin, control, comfort, durability, tension hold, touch/feel, and value. Scores are calibrated against a reference set of strings we've tested for years (ALU Power, RPM Blast, X-One Biphase, Wilson NXT) to keep the scale consistent over time.
The overall score is not a simple average. See how we weight scoring below.
We don't cut strings out at a fixed point. Each set is played until it's either physically notched out or has degraded to the point where it's no longer useful. The behavior of a string in its final hours is documented as part of the durability score.
"Dead string" is a meaningful failure mode, distinct from broken string. We track both.
If a string was provided by a manufacturer for testing, we disclose that on the review page. Provided product never changes the score, and it never gets a softer treatment. About half of our products are purchased at retail; the rest are review samples.
Affiliate links on review pages are clearly marked. See the full disclosure policy for details.
Each metric contributes to the overall score, but not equally. Tension hold matters more for polyesters; comfort matters more for multifilaments. Weights are adjusted by string category and shown below for reference.
How much pop the string adds to a clean swing. Measured by depth of ball on flat drives and consistency of launch angle across the test period.
Rotational generation on topspin and slice. Evaluated qualitatively in match play and re-tested as the string ages; spin consistency over time matters as much as peak spin.
Directional precision and predictability on full swings. The single most important metric for advanced players and the most heavily weighted in our overall scoring.
Vibration, shock transfer, and arm feel through a long session. Weighted more heavily for multifilaments and softer polys where comfort is a primary buying reason.
Time until physical breakage or notching, measured in hours of play. A string that breaks at 30 hours but plays well throughout is more valuable than one that lasts 50 but goes dead at 20.
Measured as percentage of initial tension retained after 20 hours of play. What separates a string that performs consistently from one that needs to be cut out at week three.
Communication between hand and ball, particularly on volleys, drop shots, and stretched defensive shots. The hardest metric to quantify; scored against a long-term reference set.
Price per usable hour of play, normalized to category. A premium string that lasts and performs may score higher on value than a cheap string that doesn't.
We read every email. Tips, corrections, suggestions, and questions are all welcome.