Although the Ultra Pro 18x20 came with some minor challenges on groundstrokes, its unique combination of maneuverability and precision ultimately won the day. For Chris, the payoff of this racquet's control was confidence. He explained, "I immediately found the groove from the baseline with the Ultra Pro 18x20. I'm a fan of 18x20 string patterns, and this racquet felt very natural. The launch off the stringbed was loaded with control. I felt confident enough to swing for the lines and was typically rewarded with the control I needed to find my targets. My backhand was working very well with this racquet whether I was slicing or hitting topspin. I found it easy to get the tip of the racquet through the strike zone, and that made it feel easy to inject pace or spin at will. As with the 16x19 version of this racquet, I think there's more playability to come with some added weight. This Ultra Pro 18x20 felt prime for customization. In stock form, the racquet has a slightly low swingweight for me. The beam is also very flexible and low powered, so adding weight would get me some plow through power."

Troy typically plays with heavier, more stable racquets, but he definitely appreciated this racquet's speed, control and feel on groundies. He said, "I kind of knew what to expect with this racquet because I was on the review for the Ultra Tour back in the summer of 2017, and the Ultra Pro proved to be just as good, and even better looking, this time around. It felt super whippy, as we often say in our review videos. It was fun to crank up the racquet speed on my topspin forehand and also to get extra whip on my one-handed backhand. With that being said, I typically like the swingweight on my racquets about 10 points higher than this Ultra Pro 18x20 v4; or for those not so into the specs and the racquet science, I just like more mass and plow through behind the ball when hitting my groundstrokes. For the positives, I loved the control aspect of this racquet, and I felt as though I could swing freely and never worry about spraying the ball. The backhand slice felt very controlled, and I could hit the ball with a lot of pace, while the 18x20 pattern provided plenty of feel for the ball on contact. However, the more I played points with this racquet in stock form, the more I wanted help with easier depth and more plow through when facing heavy hitters like Michelle."

"This playtest was a bit of a roller coaster for me," said Michelle, who had occasional struggles with the Ultra Pro 18x20 off the ground. "If my confidence was high and I was ready to grind, I really enjoyed hitting with this racquet and constructing longer points. The Ultra Pro 18x20 was lower powered and more control oriented for me. If I were looking to mash balls and wanted to step up and put balls away, I started to have some gripes. I was craving more stability and plow through and noted that the tip of the racquet wasn't coming through enough in pressure situations. I also noticed that the tighter string pattern was lacking a bit of that easy-to-find spin at times with my flatter shots. A few careless errors into the net wouldn't have come as easily as with a 16x19 pattern."

Like the other playtesters, Mark could have used a tad more weight and stability, but he couldn't argue with this racquet's accuracy. He said, "Among many other high-quality 305-gram frames available, the Ultra Pro 18x20 v4 stood out to me from the baseline. If the incoming ball pace and spin were huge, the Ultra Pro 18x20 was sometimes a little unstable, but until that point, I felt like I could hardly miss. The string pattern was tight enough to complement my backhand slice without diminishing a decent launch angle or reducing access to topspin off either wing. And the weight, balance, frame stiffness, etc., all contributed to me being able to easily aim my groundstrokes deep and toward small areas of the court."

As with our team's groundstrokes, volleying with the Ultra Pro 18x20 v4 came with benefits and trade-offs. While the majority of our playtesters appreciated this racquet's quick handling, great touch and pinpoint control, a couple of players would have preferred a tad more stability. For Mark, however, it was all upside. He said, "Those specs that benefited me so much from the backcourt had the same exact effect on my game at net. The head-light balance made it easy to get the Ultra Pro v4's 11.4 ounces of weight into position, with its 320-ish swingweight being just substantial enough to stabilize it, even if ball contact was not dead center."

For Chris, the Ultra Pro was an extremely precise weapon at net. He said, "Control on volleys was excellent with the Ultra Pro 18x20. I was very happy with how I found my targets on my drop volleys. I liked the amount of spin I could get on my slice angle and drop volleys because it enabled me to get the ball to die very quickly."

Despite wanting a little more mass against big hitters, Troy had a great experience with this racquet at net. He said, "Like I noticed from the baseline, this Ultra Pro 18x20 v4 felt very easy to maneuver when I was at the net. This came in handy when I needed to react quickly, and on top of that, there was a surprising amount of stability for how light this racquet felt. The control and precision felt very good, in the sense that I felt confident hitting my spots and placing the ball throughout the court. The 18x20 pattern provided added connection and feel for the ball, which I appreciated on touch shots and drop volleys. Overall, this is one of my favorite racquets to volley with based on the feel and precision, but I would still like some added weight to help against big hitters and to add a bit easier depth."

With her preference for stiffer racquets with higher swingweights, it's not surprising that Michelle couldn't find a groove with the Ultra Pro at net. She explained, "Similar to the Ultra Pro 16x19, this Ultra Pro 18x20 was really soft at net, and that isn't always my favorite because I prefer to punch balls away rather than to hit with touch and creativity. It was maneuverable, but I could have used a little more weight and plow through. I just struggled to get balls where I wanted them consistently.”

With the Ultra Pro 18x20 v4's speedy feel and precise targeting, our team had a blast serving throughout this playtest. Granted, some players wanted more power, but the upsides proved undeniable, especially for Troy. He described, "This Ultra Pro 18x20 v4 made it easy for me to serve. It felt pretty light and maneuverable, which took a bit of stress off my shoulder compared to some of the heftier racquets I have tested lately, like the Yonex Percept 97H. Considering this racquet has so much control and precision with that classically thin box beam, I noticed a decent amount of pop on my first serves. I loved going for a big flat first serve because this racquet was really easy to maneuver and made it easy to pronate my wrist, while also having a lot of precision to hit my targets. I felt like I could really pop the first serves with ease, although they may not have been as big or heavy as with a racquet that has more mass built in, like the Yonex Percept 97D or 97H. When it came to my spin serves, I found my consistency to be pretty good and could easily place the ball within the box. That said, I preferred the Ultra Pro 16x19 v4 since I could more easily find that bite on the ball, which resulted in a higher kick and bounce off the court."

Although she wanted a tad more pop, Michelle really enjoyed serving with the Ultra Pro. She said, "I had fun hitting bigger flat serves with this racquet. I have loved serving with the last few racquets I've tested, and the Ultra Pro 18x20 v4 keeps that streak going. I could accelerate easily through contact and find my targets reliably. I could have used more free power, but there were days when all I wanted to do was hit big, flat first serves down the T on both the deuce and ad side. I did feel a little more limited when it came to hitting kick serves, but I was fairly happy with my slice serves as well."

For Mark, the Ultra Pro was outstanding on serves. He said, "As far as my favorite shot to hit with Wilson's Ultra Pro 18x20 v4, it was a toss-up between groundstrokes and my serve. This racquet moved fast through contact and was extremely accurate."

"My slice serve was working very well with the Ultra Pro 18x20," said Chris, who had no problem hitting his targets on serve. "I had a lot of success going wide of my opponent with that serve and following it to net to put away the volley. I didn't find quite the same pace on serves as I did with the Ultra Pro 16x19, but I felt like I had more control."

With its easy acceleration and surgical targeting, the Ultra Pro 18x20 impressed our team when returning serves. In fact, Mark, who has playtested his fair share of racquets, may have discovered his new return GOAT. He said, "As with my groundstrokes, directional control with the Ultra Pro 18x20 v4 was outstanding with regards to my return of serve. I felt more comfortable and connected with this shot than with any other racquet I can recall."

"The Ultra Pro 18x20 v4 was an excellent racquet for hitting returns," said Chris, who appreciated the combination of speed and precision. "The maneuverability and excellent feel enabled me to take the return early and attack the ball. When I swung aggressively, I found solid pace and spin without losing control. I also had fun knifing my slice return with this racquet because I was able to generate lots of spin and pace."

Despite wanting a little more plow through on some shots, Troy found a lot to like about this racquet on returns. He said, "I loved this racquet on my doubles returns. It was super easy to maneuver, and I could place the ball on a dime. My reactions were quick, so against big servers, I could easily get the Ultra Pro 18x20 v4 into place and effectively get my returns back into play. The precision and the placement came in handy while returning in doubles, helping me to keep the ball out of my opponent's strike zone. On my backhand return, I could keep the ball low cross court or mix it up and chip the ball deep over the net player's head — both with easy command over the ball. The only knock I had was that I was left wanting more plow through. Control and placement were great when hitting my returns, but it was more difficult to get depth in the court on a consistent basis. I think with some added weight in the hoop to increase the swingweight, this racquet would be great for returns."

"When I was on and everything aligned, the Ultra Pro 18x20 v4 was great to step up and return with," added Michelle. "However, there were sessions with this racquet when I wanted some customizing; the tip of the racquet just wouldn't accelerate through, and I was hitting through the ball awkwardly.”