Sept. 24, 2002
Q&A With Nate Ferguson --- Professional Stringer & Racquet Builder
Pete uses a nearly standard Wilson HANDLE, which is different from a grip. I have made it between a 4 1/2 and 4 5/8. The grip he uses is a Wilson Cushion Aire Sponge grip. He uses that handle/grip combo because it is most comfortable for him.
Pete uses the Wilson Cushion Aire Sponge grip as well, because it absorbs more of his sweat, so the does not have to change his Tournagrip nearly as often.
Pete's frame is as follows: 27" long 390 grams 32 cm
Pete is presently testing new frames. I'd rather not get into the specifics of what frames, but suffice it to say that we are trying to reign in the power on all new models.
As for Luxilon, Pete did some extensive testing this spring, and played some matches with the Big Banger. He liked it quite a bit, but there were some "feel" issues for him. It boiled down to a matter of time. He needed to decide which string he was going play the rest of the summer with, and he went back to his Babolat gut.
As for the cosmetics game, Pete will not be playing it. He will require a mostly black frame, and the cosmetic might be specific to just him.
I have seen Pete wear through/break a set of 17g gut in the third game of a match. Some play a whole match with one set of gut. Babolat is the most popular gut. Most players would play one match with a set of strings, then restring it.
Yes, testing heavier specs could really help your game out. Try it, because it might just make it easier to play better. You might get more power AND better control. If you don't like a heavier frame, you can always just peel the lead off. (placing lead tape )
Good question, but it entirely depends on the pro. Pete has used the same 15 racquets all year this year. And when we started in January, those 15 racquets were already used! Some players are not so lucky. They may play with very light and or weak frames that have a tendency to crack. Or perhaps they have a really bad temper. Some players go through 50 or 60 frames a year, no problem. Also, you need to remember, a pro plays for at least several hours every day, and some times far more than that. They are also hitting harder and playing harder than most amatures. (I'm talking about ATP pros here, not WTA.) Therefore, their racquets go more quickly.
As for switching frames during a match, that mostly happens when the tension loosens a bit, or the string is wearing significantly. Most players don't want to risk breaking a string during a point.
Wilson Sporting Goods has some of Pete's frames.
As for adding weight to a regular player's racquet, it all depends on the player. If you or they are curious, give it a shot. I found it made hitting the ball with more power and deeper much easier.
As for Pete, he doesn't put any lead tape on his racquets. He hires some schmuck to do that for him.
I control how much material that is used to create his handle, usually 20 grams more than the normal foam handle. I then add a total of about 20-30 grams of lead from the butt end to the tip under the bumper.
Do you think it would be possible to sell Pete's St Vincents that he doesn't use anymore, through a distributor such as Tenniswarehouse?
No, not possible. Wilson Sporting goods owns the only significant quantity that I am aware of, and those precious frames are for Pete only.
I do not know how many frames Pete originally had, but if my memory serves me correctly, he sent me about 20 frames a year for about five or six years. Yes, his "closet" of racquets has run out, and he has no more. Wilson has the only significant remaining stash. As for how Pete got those frames, I never asked him. But if he had to pay for them, I'm sure he didn't even think twice about dropping that kind of cash.
I put lead tape around the end of the handle under the butt cap, some at the top of the handle under the grip, in the head at 3 & 9 o'clock, and sometimes a bit under the bumper.
I'm thinking that Pete is the best of all time, no doubt. As for the # of grand slams determining who is or would be the greatest of all time, I think that is a tough one. The game is evolving, and I think it is getting more difficult to win many majors. If Laver had played all the time he could have, it is reasonable to suggest that he would have won many more majors, but Pete would still be the best of all time in my opinion.
As for playing with old wood frames today, I agree with your assesment. Pete's game might suffer the least. For starters, he already plays with a frame that is the same length, weight and balance as an old Wilson Pro Staff!
Yes, Pete has played with the China frame, and it is not bad for him, it is just different. He does not want anything to be different at this stage.
My associate, Ron Yu, takes care of the stringing for Masters Series and Grand Slam events for Lleyton Hewitt, Tim Henman and Mark Philippoussis. He is a huge influence on the level of succes Priority One achieves in many other ways, as well.
As for traveling, it is mostly good. Sometimes it gets a bit tough to deal with the flight delays, bad food, small rooms or whatever the local problems might be. I am married and have two kids, and it is always tough to leave my family.
I used to play a lot of tennis, from pre-highschool through several years after college. When I moved to Florida, I took up golf, and dropped the tennis. Now I only play a few times a year, and, sadly, almost no golf.
Being that he really does not use many frames, there is not a huge pile of used frames anywhere. I am sure he will continue to give what racqeuts we do have to charitable causes, so that they can raise money.
Sorry, I don't go by any point system. I go with the most simple and direct and accurate method of measuring balance. Pete's balance is 320mm. If that is light or heavy, and how many points it may be us up to you. He does use a 27" racquet, it that helps you figure it out. As for Hewitt, I do not make his racquets as of now. My associate at Priority One, Ron Yu, strings them at Grand Slams and Masters Series tournaments.
Vin, he only hit the China version for about three seconds. We did not go into any good/bad, pro/con, good versus bad. He noticed it was ever so slightly different, and thought he had done alright with what he had, so he did not want to switch.
Pete used it in the spring, for a couple of tournaments, and stopped when we went to the clay courts. Although he liked a lot of things about the hybrid, he decided that he was going to use gut on grass, and he wanted to keep on one kind of string job throughout the summer. (Luxilon/Gut hybrid)
I change grommets at least partially, when they start getting worn, or a string breaks prematurely. I put tubes, pads or individual grommets on each and every main.
We usually go thicker with string, 1.27 from 1.25. Tension entirely depends on weather and court conditions. If it is hot and dry, the ball flies fast, and we go up in tension. If it is cold and wet, we'd go lower in tension. All else stays the same. (clay court)
Pete knows exatly what his racquet performance characteristics are. The only changes we ever make are so that it feels better in his hand, and so that every racquet feels exactly the same as the others. So, other than minor grip changes here and there, we don't change anything. He has never changed length, weight, balance or swing weight. If he gets a sore spot on his hand, we discuss what changes might help, and then I implement those minor changes. It is not so much that I am keeping a secret, but there are not big changes.
As for knowing what Pete wants, I know everything. He comunicates precisely what he is feeling, if there are any problems, and then we discuss options. Pete is by far the most sensitive player I have ever worked with. If he plays a few more times with one frame, he will notice that the grip is smaller. Believe me, he is not shy about telling me exactly what he feels, and then asking me to make adjustments.
I put those pads in the throat just to round out the angles, and keep the string from breaking prematurely. At 75 lbs, and sometimes with 1.22 gut string, I took every precaution I could when I first started stringing for Pete. It seemed to work well, and have always kept them the same from then on. I color and cut them to fit by hand, but don't measure them, so I don't know the dimensions.
1) Do you still travel with Pete, and what's that like? 2) Pete used to break a lot more strings during matches, like all the time, did he drop tension or change gauge, or are you just a better stringer than the guys he used before? 3) We all the know about Pete the player, what are your impressions of Pete the person?
#1 Yes, I still travel with Pete. I am there for every tournament he plays, year 'round. I do not go to Davis Cup. Traveling on the tour is one thing, but traveling with Pete is another. Being part of Pete's team has its advantages. Also, I am not doing "tournament stringing", when the pile of racquets seems to never end. Traveling can be great, like when Pete wins Grand Slams, or we get to go to a Pearl Jam concert and sit on stage, or when he calls the night before we leave for Europe and invites me on his plane. However, there are some 'not so great times" as well. When it rains all day for three days in a row, and I am just restringing the same frames over and over again, without any of them even being used. And when I have to start stringing at 3:30 am. Or flying home from Australia in a coach seat. Or spending a month away from home and family only to have Pete lose early in Paris, when it seems that all our effort is for nothing.
#2 Pete uses much less 1.22 gauge string, which breaks rediculously fast. Mostly 1.25 now.
#3 Pete is pretty much the same off the court as you see on tv. He is very polite, rather quiet, and likes to hang around with only people he is close to. He has no problem staying in his room between practices and resting his body, watching movies and taking it easy. He does not party. He does not like being out in public unless he needs to. He is not into self-congratulation, or imposing himself as the star he is.
we all know that Pete has got 14 Grand Slams... but how many of his Grand Slams were won with your stringing and racket building expertise? And what is the total number of Slams you have won with your stringing in total?(for any players)
I have built/customized Pete's racquets since summer 1990, the year he won his first grand slam at the Open. He has never played with a racquet I did not personally build since then. I have strung his frames since spring of 1998, so that is 3 Wimby' and one Open, if my memory serves me correctly. As for other players, there have been a few...Navratilova, Lendl, Seles, Novotna...
Pete gets his string for free. Top players can get that kind of stuff. Lower ranked players get a discount, and schmucks like you and me pay full price.
As for the Luxilon, you'll have to ask my friends at Babolat to find out what they think of Pete testing the most popular synthetic string on the tour and deciding to stay with the Babolat product.
Yeah, I made Lendl stuff for years, and he was not picky at all. Pete is by far the most sensitive of all.
All in all, one full cycle, it takes me a half hour to string a frame. I prestretch alone, by wrapping the string around a door handle and pulling on both ends with needle nose pliers. It really doesn't take long, because I cut three racquet lengths off the gut right away. First pull to last knot takes about 15 minutes. My record (on a frame to be used by Pete, with all the tubes and pads, at 34 kilos) is 11 minutes 59 seconds, if I remember corrctly.
I heard the St. Vincent are more flexible. And a graphite racket will lose its stiffness over time due to constant re-stringing and ball-bombarding. So will my Chinese PS 6.0 85 become closer to a St. Vincent one day?
That could be, man, could be. Makes sense, any way.