Head Boom Pro 2022 Racquet Review

Groundstrokes - Score: 86

The Head Boom Pro impressed our team with a lightning-quick swing that didn't disappoint on contact. Groundstrokes were landing deep in the court, and our playtesters loved the balanced feel; it wasn't overly hefty and didn't lose stability against big hitters. Chris explained, "The Boom Pro had a sweet feel on groundstrokes. The racquet felt plush, forgiving and offered a nice blend of power and control. I had the sense the racquet was flexing and working with my stroke, and there was a lot of dwell time to get me feeling connected to my targets. I liked the Boom Pro the most when strung up with something like Head Lynx Tour. I found it gave the racquet enough control to allow me to carry a lot of racquet head speed and take advantage of the racquet's spin potential. My topspin shots were jumping off the court nicely. While I couldn’t whip this racquet through contact as quickly as the Boom MP, I was hitting a heavier, more penetrating ball. I also felt dialed in on my slice backhand and thought this racquet complemented that shot nicely."

Michelle had the opportunity to hit for an extended period with the Boom Pro. She said, "It's always fun to playtest blacked out racquets when I don't know the specs or have any real expectations, which is how I started this Boom Pro playtest. Head initially sent out prototypes without divulging very much information. I instantly found the Boom Pro easy to swing, and it offered depth into the court while also having a very forgiving response. As I mentioned in our video review, this is one of those racquets that falls in the 'guilty pleasure' category because it is so fun to swing. The ball seemed to dwell inside the stringbed, and it felt plush and comfortable at impact. The sweetspot felt large, and there were times I thought I had overhit the ball, yet it managed to stay within the boundaries of the baseline. At times, this sensation left me feeling a little disconnected from the ball. But even on off-center hits, the racquet didn't wobble or cause any stability problems for me, and I could impart as much spin as I wanted or flatten the ball out. It was a positive playtest, but the one downside was that I felt like the balls I hit were not as heavy as they could be. I had opponents comment on the fact that while I was hitting deep, my shots weren't penetrating the court the way they do when I'm hitting with something like a Prestige Tour. With that being said, the Boom Pro felt more maneuverable than some of those beefier racquets that pack more of a punch. I took that into consideration, and instead of relying on pure plow through, I tried to construct a bit more of an intentional point and wait for a ball to attack. This allowed me to play more with angles and heights of the ball rather than just drive flat through the court."

Jason typically gravitates toward lighter racquets, but the Head Boom Pro proved to be within his wheelhouse. He said, "For being a Pro model, this was a fairly easy racquet to swing. It was noticeably easier to generate racquet head speed with than a Speed or Radical Pro. I found plenty of put-away power when I had time to set up. Getting topspin on my shots was easily done as well. One of my favorite shots to hit was my backhand slice. I didn't quite find the angles with the Pro like I did with the Boom MP, but I enjoyed the plush response at contact from both models, and I felt well connected to my shots."

The Boom Pro's specs lined up with Sage's preferences, so he quickly got into a groove with this racquet. He said, "Right out of the gate, the Boom Pro gave me a nice plush, arm-friendly feel. I liked how the flex of the frame was comfortable, yet still lively enough to drive the ball. In this case, I think the 98-square-inch head size was a great decision by Head to ensure the racquet could still offer power in such a feel-oriented frame. I noticed a high launch angle, but when combined with a shaped polyester string, the result was a deep shot that dipped inside the baseline. I thought I had missed long on more than one occasion, but the ball came down well within the lines. The weight of the racquet was also a highlight in my book. It offered enough mass to complement its fast-swinging nature. The versatility of the Boom Pro and my ability to shift from offense to defense with ease made the baseline my favorite area of the court."

Volleys - Score: 86

The Head Boom Pro was versatile at net, and the racquet's maneuverability was again the highlight for our team. The ability to get the racquet into position early meant that Jason had time to set up and find the sweetspot consistently. He described, "Once again, I loved the feel and response from this racquet. I was able to put away shots with ease and absorb pace well. It didn't feel as sluggish as I thought it would, so that was definitely a plus. I could play with both touch and power with this racquet."

Michelle felt right at home closing the net with the Boom Pro following an approach shot. She said, "At net, this racquet worked well, and it was fairly easy to navigate against every sort of player. There was good touch and feel, but it was also quick to get in place and held up relatively well against big hitters targeting the 'handcuff' shots. I really enjoyed playtesting this racquet in doubles because it was so easy to transition from the back of the court, and it worked seamlessly at net. Angles and drop volleys were fun to execute, and because I found a bit of extra dwell time on the stringbed, I felt in command of what I was doing."

Finding confidence in placement, Sage had no complaints volleying with this racquet. He said, "The Boom Pro was wonderfully predictable at net. I could rely on the racquet to stay steady in the hand against big hitters without giving up comfort. It picked up half volleys nicely, putting me in a good position as I worked my way inside the service box during point play. The balance showcased just how maneuverable this racquet is, especially during doubles. Even when I was at full stretch, it offered plenty of stability to put the ball back in play and extend the point. My biggest takeaway was the feel the racquet gave me. It performed well when I needed a soft touch to drop the ball short or stick a volley to hit through the court."

"I continued to enjoy the feel of the Boom Pro," added Chris. "I volleyed with lots of accuracy and always felt like I had a solid sense of where my shots were going to land. The specs were well suited to me. I found the Boom Pro easy to maneuver, yet it also had enough mass to feel solid at impact. The stringbed felt forgiving, with a large sweetspot and lots of comfort. My touch volleys were finding their targets, and the racquet was maneuverable enough for me to easily cup under the ball and add spin."

Serves - Score: 85

On serve, the Boom Pro was a finely tuned machine. Although it didn't produce the fastest serves to come through our playtesting department, the spin it generated was more than enough to make it one of our team's favorite serving racquets in recent memory. Michelle explained, "While I gravitate toward heavy and demanding racquets off the ground, I prefer something quicker and a tad lighter on serve. That is why I think I enjoyed serving with this racquet so much. I have been trying to disguise my serves a bit more, especially in doubles, and this racquet allowed me to hit every serve I possess with confidence while disguising them well. I love going flat down the T off both sides, but I could really execute the heavy slice off the court on the deuce side, which I sometimes struggle to find. I also leaned into adding more kick on my second serves and noticed I had lots of access to spin, and because the racquet moved fast through the air, I could get that serve hopping up and out of my opponent's strike zone. I was able to mix in a flat body serve too, and I felt well equipped when starting the point."

It was smooth sailing for Sage on serves. He said, "I settled into placing my serve more than hitting with power. My slice was super effective. I learned early in the test that I could take pace off and rely on placement as a weapon. As a result, my first-serve percentage was higher than usual. The power was definitely there when I wanted to flatten out the ball and hit down the T, but I used that more as a change of pace."

Jason needed some time to feel out the weight of the racquet, but he was ultimately happy with the result. He said, "Was I hitting some Boom-ing serves with this racquet? Yes! Without really changing up my swing speed or anything else, I was getting more speed on my serve, which was great. The open string pattern was very helpful for slice serves as well. It took a little getting used to because of the swingweight, but it was rock solid after that short acclimation period."

Similar to Jason's experience, Chris had to work a bit to dial in what the racquet had to offer. He described, "My serve was the only shot to take some adjustment time with the Boom Pro. For the first couple of sessions with the racquet, if I missed a serve, it was invariably into the net. However, as the test wore on, my serves clicked with the racquet, and I ended up very happy with the results. I felt like I was getting decent pace and plenty of spin. My targeting continued to improve the more I got used to the racquet, and I finished the test serving very confidently with it."

Returns - Score: 85

The Head Boom Pro continued to impress on return of serve. Even against big servers, our team noted a comfortable response and easy depth. Chris said, "I had fun taking a good rip at returns with the Boom Pro. The plush response made the racquet feel comfortable and smooth at impact. I liked the amount of power and control I had with my returns, which resulted in lots of confidence during point play. The topspin I could get on my shots was impressive. I was able to hit high and deep with lots of pace and still get my shots to drop well inside the lines."

Sage appreciated the confidence he had in his placement and margins. He explained, "The Boom Pro's versatility was again on display in the returning department. The racquet gave me the comfort and control to step into a return against a weak serve. When I needed to play defense, I found a remarkably solid feel when shortening my backswing and blocking a heavy ball. Head has produced a racquet that has enough mass to absorb the impact of the ball while being balanced in a way that keeps it maneuverable."

Returning with the Boom Pro was high risk, high reward for Jason. He explained, "This racquet brings more mass and more swingweight to every shot than I am used to, so that translated to bigger and harder hit returns. I loved that I could really attack the slower serves and drive the ball deep when I hit a chip return against the bigger serves. I did hit more errors to go along with the higher winner count, but that tradeoff is to be expected."

"With the ball sitting on the stringbed, I felt like I could attack returns confidently and hold my returns a bit longer than normal," added Michelle. "Because the racquet swung fast for me, it felt like I had ample time to pick a spot — whether it was deep down the line or angled off the court, or even a more neutral return deep into the middle of the court. In doubles, my dippers were hitting just past the service line, allowing me to get the ball right at the feet of the server, or I could swing the return off the court with an angle to open up the middle of the court. Slice returns were efficient as well."

Overall - Score: 86