The Mantis Tour 305 is a really nice offering for tennis players who are looking to add to their games. I was introduced to the Mantis Tour 305 from a friend a while back but I had not had the opportunity to review it properly. Picking up the frame, it felt really nice and solid in my hand, swinging it in the air felt very smooth. The Mantis Tour 305’s paint is actually quite nice, the red, white, and black all compliment each other. The finish is not overdone and is pleasant. The racquet is not bulky or overly hefty, I was looking forward to getting out on the tennis courts with it.
Mantis Tour 305 playtest
My initial impression was actually really good with the Mantis Tour 305, it felt great for my groundstrokes. I never felt like I had to swing harder to get pace, the racquet did all of that on it’s own. The Mantis Tour 305 weighs in at a very nice 11.2 ounces (strung) and a swingweight of 304. I prefer the feeling of a little more weight when swinging, though this tennis racquet has the capabilities to be fully customized. From both the backhand and forehand, the Mantis Tour 305 was stable through impact and thanks to the semi flexible frame, the tennis ball sunk in nicely to the string bed.
One of my favorite characteristics coming from the Mantis was the access to spin. The open string pattern of 16×18, gave the ball the opportunity to be pocketed exceptionally well. The spin on the ball was nice, I was able to hit deep topspin forehands and backhands easily without having to adjust my grip to get those extra revolutions per minute. While hitting aggressively, the Mantis Tour 305 was not hard on the arm nor did I feel like I had to overswing to get what I needed. Controlling the tennis ball with the Mantis Tour 305 was a delight. I didn’t find crazy amounts of control, though it was enough to put it where I wanted it, when I needed it.
Like I said earlier, the Mantis Tour 305 lacked a bit of weight during the swing (this is for my preference), this gave me some trouble with serves. Don’t get me wrong, slices and kick serves were very easy and had a lot of effect on the ball; I had difficulty with the flat serves. The racquet did not have the mass in the motion to give that “heavy“ serve. I could get the some of the pace and placement to make it fun to serve with, though the racquet lacked the authoritative feeling when attempting to hit a big serve.
Final thoughts on the Mantis Tour 305
Over all, the Mantis Tour 305 is a fine tennis racquet that has a lot of potential. For me, personally, I would add a couple of grams at the 12 o’clock position to bring up the swingweight a little bit for a bit more plow-through.
I believe that the Mantis Tour 305 would be ideal for most any player that wants to add a little more to their tennis game. This tennis racquet would be ideal for the NTRP 3.5 all the way up to the NTRP 5.0 (with some customization of course). The Mantis Tour 305 offers a lot of versatile playability from all points of the tennis court; it offers good pop, great spin, and fairly decent control. I highly suggest all tennis players give the Mantis Tour 305 a playtest!
Mantis Tour 305 racquet specifications:
Head Size: 95 sq. in. / 612.9 sq. cm.
Length: Standard
Strung Weight: 11.2oz / 317.51g
Balance: 6 pts HL
Swingweight: 304
Stiffness: 67
String Pattern: 16 Mains / 18 Crosses
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