Spring weather is upon us and more and more tennis players are getting back onto the courts. That means the Holabird Sports stringers have been busy restringing plenty of racquets as players get ready for all their summer tennis. With the spring restring rush on, I thought that now would be the perfect time to review some new string-related gizmos called Pojie Racquet Performance Extensions.
I have to admit that when the Pojies first crossed my desk, I was pretty skeptical. I've been playing tennis almost my whole life, and I've been working here at Holabird for over a decade, so I've seen plenty of little gadgets come and go. My first thought was that Pojies were a modernized version of power pads (for everyone who is unfamiliar, power pads are small pieces of leather that were largely used with wooden racquets and were inserted between the strings and the frame in order to help protect the strings from the frame's rough edges). Unlike power pads, however, Pojie Racquet Performance Extensions aren't really intended to protect your strings. Instead, they're designed to protect your arm, provide more spin and control, and enlarge the racquet's sweetspot.
The folks at String Advantage were kind enough to send us over some samples for testing, so Louie and I both installed a set on our racquets to give them a try.
Installation is easy enough—if you can string a racquet, installing Pojies in the throat area is simple. Depending upon the pattern of your racquet, you'll need either three or four Pojies, with a few exceptions. Some racquets (including my Prince EXO3 Rebel 95) that would normally require four Pojies don't have enough clearance in the throat area for the outer two Pojies. Trying to install them pushes the main strings against the inside of the throat and will compromise the feel of the racquet, so in those cases you should only use two Pojies for the center four main strings.
On the court, the Pojies definitely create a different feel at ball impact. Like most things related to feel and playability, it's a little hard to pin down exactly and put into words. My personal feeling was that Pojie created a softer, more dampened response. I didn't notice any real increase in spin or control, and if my racquet's sweetspot was enlarged, it was a marginal increase. Of course, without any hard, scientific evidence, this is all predicated simply on my personal feelings after testing Pojie for a while.
Louie, on the other hand, reported that he did notice a significant improvement in control as well as a larger, more forgiving sweetspot. Like me, Louie also felt that Pojie created a softer-feeling stringbed that made his racquet more comfortable even with a stiff polyester string.
Overall, Louie and I both agree that Pojie Performance Racquet Extensions weren't game-changers, but they're certainly good products—especially if you're trying to manage any arm discomfort. Pojies are priced reasonably too, and they can survive two or three (maybe four) restrings before they need to be replaced, so it's really a pretty small investment that can make a real difference in terms of comfort. If you have any arm issues, these little guys are definitely worth a try and players without any arm issues may reap some of Pojies' benefits too.
Pojie Racquet Performance Extensions Review
