Breakdown

Groundstrokes: 8.2

For 2024, the Phantom 100X 305 gets some small updates to the feel with the introduction of Textreme with Zylon, a synthetic polymer added to enhance stability. The racquet remains one of the most flexible on the market. It took Michelle a while to get used to the flexible feel, but she found her groove after a couple of hours. She said, "First things first, this racquet was outside of my wheelhouse just based on the stiffness rating alone, which meant I had to adjust to the flexible feel coming from the stiff setups I tend to hit. I could also reduce the impact of the flexible frame by using a stiffer string strung tighter. The Phantom 100X 305 was easy to generate depth and spin with from my very first hit. It did feel like the sweetspot was a bit lower than where I like to hit the ball, and it was a bit hot and cold. If I wasn't hitting in the sweetspot, there were times I was overhitting and the ball launched a bit on me, or I found the racquet to be a bit unstable in my hands. It swung really fast, though, and it was easy to add arc to my shots to push my opponents back. To get it more dialed in for my tastes, I would start by stringing with a poly at a tighter tension to create more of a boardy feel from the stringbed. I probably would also consider playing around with some customization to open up that sweetspot, and I’d add a bit of mass to bring the swingweight up a couple points. I was able to playtest this racquet side by side with its heavier family member, the Phantom 100X 18x20, and that racquet had a more solid feel and a bit more stability, but it did lack the easy access to spin and depth I found with the 100X 305.”

Brittany also felt like she needed a couple of hours to get familiar with this racquet. She said, "After about a one- to two-hour adjustment period to get used to the feel and specs of the Phantom 100X 305g, I started to really enjoy the solid, stable feel. There is definitely more control than power, so I needed to be able to generate my own power with a little more effort by increasing my racquet head speed. I enjoyed rallying with this racquet in practice, but I noticed I struggled to put the ball away when being aggressive during point play. On the other hand, I have to give a shoutout to this racquet's performance on my slice backhand. Normally it is my weakest shot, but I was really able to find a groove. It started on defensive shots, where I was able to keep the ball low and neutral to stay in the point. I was so successful that I started hitting offensive slice backhands, and I was not only winning points, but also hitting winners."

As a fan of soft-feeling Prince racquets, Tiffani felt comfortable with the Phantom 100X 305 right away. Just like Brittany, she also found it low-powered, but this didn't stop her from praising it. She explained, "I am a big fan of racquets with lower flex ratings, and this Phantom 100X 305g certainly fits that bill. My own Prince ATS Textreme Tour 100P measures just a couple of points stiffer (61 RA versus 59 RA) and has the same unstrung weight. Because of those similarities, I didn't need any time to feel comfortable playing from the baseline with the Phantom. I really liked the plush feel when the ball hit the sweetspot, and it did feel like there was a good amount of dwell time. I could get easy net clearance, and I felt in control of the ball when I was striking it well. Even though some specs are similar between my racquet and this Phantom, the slightly thicker beam of the Tour 100P offers me more power, especially outside of the sweetspot. The drop-off in power outside the sweetspot was noticeable for me. We string our playtest racquets with poly at 52 or 53 pounds, but I would drop the tension to the mid- to upper 40s to open up the power levels and the sweetspot. Overall, I really liked the feel, and I could build creative points with this Phantom 100X 305g."

Zsofi didn't mind that the Phantom 100X 305 was low-powered because she prefers to hit all out if possible, and she thought the amazing spin potential of the frame made up for its lack of power. She said, "Coming into this playtest as someone who has heard so many good things about the Phantom racquets but has never actually tried them, I was really excited, and I actually ended up being super impressed by the Phantom 100X 305! The first thing that stood out to me (other than the cool look of the racquet) was how plush it felt at the baseline. It is definitely a soft and low-powered frame. My shots were at first landing very short around the service line, but then I adjusted them and utilized more spin to get my shots deeper in the court. I honestly don't mind that the racquet is low powered because it allows me to hit all out. I also really enjoyed the great spin potential of the frame! I right away noticed that the launch angle was pretty high and that I could really tap into that and put a lot of spin on my balls, which I truly loved. When it comes to control, I thought the racquet was precise, and I had great control of my shots. I especially enjoyed how smooth my shots felt."

Volleys: 8.2

When coming to net, our playtesters highlighted the Phantom 100X 305g's feel on volleys. Brittany was pleased with the amount of touch she was getting. She said, "The best place to talk about feel is up at net. The Phantom family, as I have come to expect, offers a very flexible feel. When I made contact in the sweetspot, I was rewarded with pure power. I felt like the ball would sink into the stringbed and then almost trampoline out. However, the sweetspot felt small, and I noticed quite a drop in power when I hit outside it. The plus side of that was that I could really feel where the ball was landing on the stringbed and adjust for the next shot. Nonetheless, I was able to nicely carve some volleys and be creative with my shot selection. It was really fun to see what I could come up with, and I even hit a couple of cheeky half volleys."

Tiffani loved how plush the Phantom 100X 305g felt at net. She said, "Once again, I really enjoyed the plush feel. I could also get the racquet into position pretty easily, so I felt confident moving forward. It felt versatile to me at net, and I could punch at my volleys or try a bit of a softer hand to drop some volleys short. That's not typically a strength of mine, but I was able to hit a couple of nice drop volleys."

While Zsofi enjoyed the new Prince Phantom 100X 305g on volleys, she thought the racquet's lack of power showed at times. She explained, "I had great control and feel for my volleys. The Phantom 100X 305g was easy to maneuver and get into position too. The low-powered feel was also present on volleys, though, so I just had to keep that in mind."

Michelle had a similar experience at the net. She added, "I loved volleying with this racquet, but I found I had to have my foot on the gas and go full throttle by taking big cuts at the ball. When I tried to implement more touch, which is not my game, the ball just flopped and didn't make it over the net. If I went after volleys, though, I could be effective."

Serves: 8.1

Our playtesters had diverging opinions when it came to serving with the Phantom 100X 305g. A couple of them would have liked more free power on this particular shot, but Zsofi found that the Phantom 100X 305g complemented her serving style. She said, "Serves felt comfortable with this racquet! Generally, I like to serve with a lot of slice, and I was able to do that well with the Phantom 100X 305g."

With the Phantom 100X 305g in her hand, Michelle found success hitting both first and second serves. She said, "I enjoyed serving with this racquet. It was easy to hit bigger first serves, but this is also a fun racquet to hit slice and kicks with. I could hit bigger with the heavier 320-gram 18x20, but I appreciated the ease of serving with this racquet."

Brittany, however, felt like this racquet was underpowered on serves, and she had to focus to get the most out of it. She explained, "The serve was the shot where I most noticeably struggled to create power with the Phantom 100X 305g. I hit most of my first serves using slice and aiming toward the body or down the T (on the ad side). I had to make more of a conscious effort to get the racquet over my head and flick my wrist to hit a kick second serve. However, when I did, I was rewarded with a heavier, more effective serve that kept my opponent from attacking."

"I wasn't getting a lot of free power from this racquet anywhere on the court, and it was most noticeable to me on serve," Tiffani added. "I thought the power levels were moderate to low, but I was serving consistently with the Phantom 100X 305g. This racquet feels similar to my Tour 100P when I swing it over my head, so I had a good serving rhythm, and I was able to keep my double faults to a minimum, which is always a plus!"

Returns: 7.9

Opinions on returns also varied among the playtesters depending on their spec preferences and playing styles. After figuring out the optimal way for her to return with this Phantom 100X 305g, Brittany enjoyed the response from the racquet. She said, "I appreciated the stable feel and the more control-oriented response when I was returning. While the Phantom 100X 305G wasn't as easy to get around my body as the 290-gram version, I just adjusted by taking a step back to give myself a fraction more time. I could then step in and swing freely. This allowed me to be aggressive, and as with most racquets, I preferred returning over serving.”

On the flip side, Michelle generally prefers racquets with higher swingweights, so she had to adjust her return tactics to fit this Phantom 100X 305g. She explained, "When I have racquets that don't perfectly align with my tastes and are a bit lower in swingweight or static weight, it usually shows the most on my return. This racquet was explosive through the air when I took big cuts, but sometimes it came through too fast. Sometimes I felt like I was too far ahead of my shot."

Tiffani noticed some slight instability with certain returns, but overall she had a positive experience returning with the Phantom 100X 305g. She said, "For me, it's not surprising to find that I was more confident starting points as the returner. I didn't have issues getting this racquet around my body in time, and the feel in the sweetspot felt comfortable and plush. I did notice some instability with off-center contact, but the racquet remained comfortable."

Zsofi agreed with Tiffani about the frame feeling unstable at times, but she still thought it performed well during returns. She concluded, "The return was where I would have liked to add maybe a few more grams to the hoop to make it a bit more stable against heavier shots, but I still felt pretty confident. I enjoyed being able to take charge of the rallies, sometimes just by slicing the balls back and keeping them nice and low."

Breakdown Summary