Engage Pursuit Ultra Review
After two years, Engage has released their updated models to the original Pursuit line with the new Pursuit Ultra. These new models claim to have better spin, better balance, and a larger sweet spot. Let's dive in and see how they stack up.
Specs:
Price: $259.99
Discount code PBSTUDIO will save you 20%
Thickness: 16mm & 13mm
Weight range:
Lite weight: 7.8-8.1oz
Standard: 8.2-8.5oz
Shape:
Elongated (16.5x7.5)
Standard (16x8)
Handle length:
MX: 5.75"
EX: 5.0"
Grip circumference:
6.0: 4-3/8"
Non 6.0: 4-1/4"
Face: Carbon fiber
Core: Polymer
Swing weight:
MX 6.0: 130
MX: 118
EX 6.0: 115
EX: 110
Spin:
RPM: 1300~
Warranty: Lifetime
Built-in: Made in the USA
There are several notable things I'd like to mention right away. The first is the handle on the new Ultras.
The old Engage Pursuits had exposed polymer. If you've followed me for any time, you know that I think this is an absolute cop-out cheap thing to do on a paddle.
Unfortunately, the Pursuit Ultras STILL have exposed polymer in the handle. In 2023 where $100 paddles have no exposed polymer, there is zero excuses to have such a poor handle design on a $260 product. Everyone loves to quote USA-made paddles as being "better built," but there is nothing about the Ultra handles that feel more premium than even a generic $100 Chinese paddle.
I mean, seriously, Engage waited two years to release the Ultra, and they couldn't come up with a way to cover the core in the handle?
The second is that the grips are now thicker than the original. While the Engage website claims they are the same size across models, after measuring myself, they are not the same. For example, the original MX Pursuit that I own feels much closer to a 4.125" grip, and the Pursuit EX 6.0 was 4.25".
The Ultra MX was 4.25", and the EX Ultra 6.0 was right around 4.4".
The new grips were noticeably chunkier in the hand when holding them side by side, and there's a demographic of people who will find this very disappointing. Particularly women with smaller hands. 4.4" is a really thick grip for almost anyone. Throw an overgrip on it, and now you are around 4.5".
Spin:
One thing I was particularly excited to check out was whether or not the spin had improved from the previous Pursuit. The only thing holding the Pursuit back from being a top-tier paddle is that the spin is mediocre. Especially compared to the market today.
Well...unfortunately, Engage managed to keep it the exact same or even slightly worse. With the surface of the Pursuit, I have always seen a mixed bag of results in my spin test (probably the only company to see so much variance out of the 200+ times I've done this). The highest result on a brand new Pursuit I achieved was in the 1500s. Not bad, but not amazing.
Both of my Ultras were in the 1300~ range. But, again, after two years of waiting and spin being perhaps the biggest grip of the original Pursuit, I'm very disappointed they didn't perform better.
Not to mention the texture they are using is some applied texture and wears off very quickly. Within my first week of testing the paddle, the center was already smoothing over, and the face had chip marks all over it.
Today some paddles are passing 2000+ RPM, so 1300 is an extremely poor result for a $260 paddle.
If you are someone who doesn't hit heavy topspin or roll the ball at the net, you probably won't mind. However, this paddle is best suited for someone with more flat-hitting mechanics.
Power:
Now we've come to my next disappointment. Based on the marketing, it was unclear if the Ultra was thermoformed. They advertise what appears to be a foam injection, and in the marketing images, it looks thermoformed.
However, I spoke directly to Engage, and they said it is not thermoformed.
Okay, no big deal. Not everything has to be thermoformed, and it seems the technology still has some maturing to do.
What disappointed me was that the power decreased slightly from the original Pursuit.
It's in a weird range where it isn't reduced so much that it's a completely different feel; it's very subtle, and I think some people would believe nothing changed.
Now, to Engage's credit, the original Pursuits were very poppy. Even with all of the thermoformed paddles on the market, I still consider the Pursuit MX one of the harder-hitting paddles on the market.
With that being said, if Engage wanted to reduce the power, they should have reduced it even more if that was their goal. The difference in power between the Ultra and the original isn't large enough to call the Ultra a "control" version.
It puts the Ultra in an awkward spot where the control isn't as good as a gen 1 raw carbon fiber paddle, but it isn't as powerful as the new thermoformed paddles.
I'm sure there are a few people out there who will find this to be the perfect blend for them, but I think Engage should have considered going for more control or even more power. Not an awkward middle ground that didn't change much from the original.
Control:
I had a very easy time dinking and dropping with the Ultras, but the one area I never found myself getting in a good groove was resets. The ball was always a little bit higher than I wanted, and I found myself losing more points due to my inability to get the ball down like other paddles.
The best thing I can say about the Ultra is that it's an all-court paddle. It doesn't excel in control like a gen 1 raw carbon fiber paddle, but it also isn't a powerhouse.
Feel:
I want to give credit to Engage for the amazing feel of their paddles.
They have a very unique feel that sets them apart from the market. They have a very crisp and firm pop off the face that feels extremely satisfying. I don't know if I can name another paddle on the market that has quite the same feel as the Pursuit line of paddles. The whole face of the paddle feels very consistent, reactive, and lively.
It's one of my favorite feeling paddles on the market.
The difference in feel from the original Pursuit is very subtle. It’s a touch softer and not as crisp off the face, but still very similar. To my ear, the new one is also slightly quieter. Not by a significant amount, but enough to for me to notice on court.
Hand battles:
Aside from the MX 6.0 having an abnormally high swing weight, the rest are pretty average.
Hand battles are the area I enjoy Engage paddles the most. The pop feels so good off the face, and I can get ahead of my opponent more quickly.
I could drill hands all day with an Engage and have a blast; it's so much fun.
I never found myself having speed issues with my MX or my EX 6.0; however, they do feel slightly more head heavy than other paddles that I am used to.
Sweet spot:
I didn't notice a large difference between the sweet spot of the original Pursuit and the new Ultra. It may have been marginally better on the Ultra, but it wasn't by enough to be considered a drastic change.
I would put the sweet spot barely above an average paddle. I never had complaints while using it.
Closing thoughts:
The Ultra is a very confusing paddle to me. After taking this paddle out for testing, hardly anything changed. They didn't improve upon the flaws of the original Pursuit and, in some cases, made the paddle worse (chunkier grips). It's nearly the same paddle but for $40 more.
For some people, the slightly softer feel of the Ultra might be very appealing, but is it still appealing for $260? In my opinion, it isn't.
Every time I read "Ultra" on the paddle, the only thing that comes to my mind is that the paddle is ultra overpriced.
When you combine poor spin, poor handle quality, and hardly any good changes from the original Pursuit, I don't know how anyone can justify the price tag.
If you've never tried a Pursuit paddle, I would recommend the original Pursuit over the Ultra. You are getting a very similar paddle for $40 cheaper, and with discount code PBSTUDIO, you can get the original for ~$180.
I had much higher expectations from Engage with the Ultra. The original Pursuit was a big success, and the Ultra misses the mark in too many categories to be called an upgrade.
The Ultra isn’t a bad paddle, it’s just a bad value.