ITS ALL IN THE STRING

The right tension. Getting the proper stringing for your racquet gives you the advantage to your game.

ITS ALL IN THE STRING

When all issues about footwork, hand and eye coordination, stroke and speed have been addressed, there’s a couple concerns players face—gauge and tension.

It’s the much-hyped theory that thinner means more tension and more tension equals more power.

Even those who have yet to overcome their problems in reaching the ball or shuttle in time and executing the proper swing techniques try to give their game a boost by going to the local sports shop and arm themselves with the newest frames and load ’em up with strings at sky high tensions.
But it’s not that simple, really.

In racket sports, like other sports using state of the art gear, success and enjoyment comes when there’s a balance of skill and fine equipment.
Picking the right material, weight, shape and size of the racket, and loading it up with what string gauge and at what tension could be hit and miss. The key is finding the right person to guide and assist the player, and not just a salesperson trying to make his quota.

Bobby Claudio, chief executive officer of Toby's Sports, studied the techniques of stringing way ahead of anyone in the sports retail business in the country. Back then, the internet was only in its infancy and even abroad, books about the art of stringing were rare. He learned it hands on, working at a sports retail company in the United States. His bosses were actually curious why someone of such credentials was working as a racket stringer.

Fast forward and Claudio bumped into his former boss, the Filipino now the owner of the pioneer in sports retail in the country, where many of the country’s best athletes get their gear.

And before the boom of badminton in the Philippines, way before the sports shop on the street corner acquired a stringing machine off ebay, the cream of the crop in racket sports in the country have been relying on Toby’s Sports for firepower.

Felix Barrientos, the former Filipino star who had battled other stars such as 1987 Wimbledon champion Pat Cash of Australia, and RP Davis Cupper Roland So were among the first who were backed by Toby’s Sports.

Now there’s a racket sports fever, everyone wants to have the edge and with the power of the internet, new and used equipment—including stringing machines from equipment cloning factories in nearby countries—can be ordered, paid and delivered right to one’s doorstep with just a click of a button.

Enticing are the terms “repulsion characteristics,” “custom braided,” “graphite impregnated” and “multi-filament” when delivered by the smooth-talking salesman at the new sports shop, getting players to shell out some more.
But nothing comes close to getting help from a pro at Toby’s Sports, who would gladly explain “exceeding recommended limits,” “frame stress,” “playability” and other issues while dispelling the false theory that more tension means better.
The latest strings and the best pro stringers are at Toby’s Sports, which has provided the service for over 30 years, and has been a member of the United States Racquet Stringers’ Association. Using manual stringing machines, which produce more accurate and precise tensions than their electric counterparts, Toby’s Sports stringers also recertify yearly up to international standards and are constantly updated with the latest techniques and specific stringing patterns for each individual racquet.

Now that is all you need to do before an important match.

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About Toby’s Sports

Toby’s Sports is the number 1 and largest sports retail chain in the Philippines, known for its widest selection of sports gear, quality service and innovative store design. Toby’s offers a line of over 101,600 sports products from 148 internationally known sports brands, covering 46 different sports. To date, Toby’s has  40 branches nationwide, 29 of which are company – owned stores located in Metro Manila, and 11 of which are franchise stores strategically located in cities throughout the country.

Toby’s Sports also introduced the first interactive sports store concept in the Philippines, the “Toby’s Sports Arena.” Designed to resemble a real sports arena Toby’s pushes to give customers more than just a shopping experience as it is equipped with a unique oval track design and offers interactive attractions such as  (1) THE SHOOTOUT, a half-court basketball shooting area with an authentic, professional court; (2) THE ROCK, a 25-foot high freeform indoor climbing wall that presents varying challenges for beginner, intermediate or advanced climbers. Toby’s Sports Arena stores are located in  Mall of Asia, SM The Block, Alabang Town Center, SM Pampanga, and Cagayan de Oro City.

Toby’s is also instrumental in discovering many of the country’s sports heroes through its grassroots sports development programs like the Toby’s Youth Badminton Championships, Toby’s Juniors Volleyball League, and Toby’s Tennis Festival which are yearly sports tournaments that Toby’s organizes.

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