25/04/2023
Head ELITE PRO, Made in Austria in 1988.
Conchita Martinez won her Wimbledon title with this frame!
The ELITE PRO is the sister of the famous PRESTIGE PRO and ELEKTRA PRO.
The Elektra was the flexiest of the three, the Prestige the stiffest, the Elite just a little flexier than the Prestige but stiffer and more crisp than the Elektra.
Head's flagship racket line which was soon forgotten by the average US player as Head, and everybody else, transitioned to 'widebodies' at that time. :) HEAD (Austria) only made this model for one year, 1988. In 1989, it was replaced by a model of the same name, but vastly different "widebody" mold, hence, the green/black Elite Pro "thinbeam" is extremely rare today. The original white grommets and half-CAP bumper also were prone to brittleness and disintegration. I retrofitted my ELITE with black full-CAPS and trimmed them to size. There is a "notch" on the frame's mould where the half-CAP would end (at roughly 10 and 2 o'clock positions), and the beam beneath was bulked up slightly to make the frame smoother looking. The original Prestige Pro and subsequent Prestige Mids - all fitted with full-length CAPS - did not have the "notch."
A sensational playing stick!
Specs:
Pattern: 18x20
Weight: 340
SW: 319
Flex: 52
Balance: 9 HL
