Asics Court FF 3 Men's Tennis Shoe Review (2024)

Comfort: 9.2

Asics continues to use its signature FlyteFoam midsole cushioning to create a plush ride in this Court FF 3 update. Troy has been a big fan of Asics shoes and has typically found them very comfortable overall. He said, "I have tested many iterations of the Gel Resolution, but this was my first time getting to playtest the Court FFs, and they lived up to their hype. I would start off by mentioning that the biggest downside of this shoe is the entry. The opening of the mono-sock bootie was slightly small and not all that easy to stretch open to get my foot inside. That said, once my foot was inside the shoe, it was pretty much all good! That upper part of the mono-sock was nice and stretchy, as well as breathable, and to my surprise, I actually found a slightly more cushioned feel underfoot compared to the Gel Resolution 9. I wasn't sure if that had to do with midsole composition, the insole or a bit of both, but I was pleased with the comfortable feel and the shock absorption."

"The Court FF 3s offered me a very comfortable ride," continued Chris. "I have narrow feet, and I was able to find a comfortably secure fit in these shoes with no real break-in required. As I continued to wear the shoes, they got even more comfortable. The FF 3s had enough flex to move with my feet, and my on-court movement felt very natural. There was a ton of cushioning under my heels, and I found the ride plusher and a little more elevated compared to the Gel Resolution 9s. Ventilation was ample, and my feet never felt overheated in these shoes."

Mark highlighted the plush cushioning and excellent ventilation, saying, "Cushioning underfoot was better than sufficient when wearing the Asics Court FF 3; there was maybe even a little more cushioning than the current Gel Resolution 9. Breathability-wise, the uppers allowed my feet to stay cool during play without diminishing support, and like most tennis shoes, the Court FF 3 includes a medium arch height for the stock insert, which matched up just fine with my arch type."

Jason had to wear these shoes for a couple of hours to unlock their potential. He said, "I felt like these Court FF 3s needed a slight break-in before they were really comfortable, because the uppers felt a little stiff, especially around the ankle collar. I've always loved the FlyteFoam midsoles, and I still love them in these Court FF 3 shoes; they provided a well-cushioned ride while still feeling pretty responsive. As for the fit, the forefoot felt pretty voluminous, so it accommodated my E-width feet with no problem, and the length was true to size."

Foot Support / Stability: 9.2

Asics hit the jackpot in terms of support and stability in the Court FF 3s with the combination mesh/TPU upper and mono-sock bootie construction. Chris gave top marks to the Court FF 3s when it came to support. He said, "While being very fast-feeling shoes, the Court FF 3s offer a high level of support. I was able to move very well in these shoes and found them to feel especially good when attacking. They supported my feet well when I was moving laterally. I liked the feel of the Court FF 3s when they were flexing and working with my feet, unlike super stiff shoes which can feel like they are working against my direction of movement. The support made me feel faster rather than restricting me in any way."

Mark had a similar opinion of this shoe's support. He described, "As far as the fit and support of these shoes, the Court FF 3s feature a medium-width toe box and are true to size in terms of length. Combined with its overall glove-like fit and the mono-sock bootie construction, the foot support in the new Court FF 3 was as good as it gets for me."

"For me, this area is what makes the Court FF 3 so special," added Jason. "It can be a bit tough to get your feet into the FF 3s, but once in, it feels like your feet are sitting within the shoes and are very well secured. It's like getting into the bucket seat of a F1 car with a five-point harness; my feet felt like they weren't moving anywhere, and the stability of the shoes was just as top notch. I was able to move very aggressively from sideline to sideline and plant my feet with confidence. I never felt like my feet were going to roll over."

Troy offered another comparison between the Court FF 3s and his trusty Gel Resolution 9s. He continued, "I felt like once I was inside the shoes, the bootie fit hugged my feet well and made me feel very secure. The lateral stability was also pretty good; there was a secure feel whenever I made a lateral cut, and there was a secure feel that let me push off aggressively without worry. If I’m being really nitpicky, in comparison to the Gel Resolution 9, this Court FF 3 feels slightly higher off the court (or a bit more elevated), so the Gel Resolution 9 feels slightly more stable and lower to the court. That said, the Gel Resolution 9 is likely the best on the market (along with the adidas Barricade) when it comes to stability, so that's not really a knock on these shoes."

Overall Sole Durability: 8

Our playtest team put the Asics Court FF 3s to the test over long hours on an indoor hard court. Logging in the most hours, Mark was impressed with the overall durability on display. He said, "For high-performance tennis shoes that do not include an outsole warranty, the Court FF 3s were pretty abrasion resistant and durable from heel to toe cap. I have maybe 25 hours on my pair so far, and I have plenty of outsole left."

"The overall durability was good for the level of wear that I put on these shoes," said Troy. "I was somewhere in the range of about 17 to 20 hours of use, and I noticed some slight balding under the balls of my feet. The Asics high-abrasion rubber compound held up pretty well, although the toe durability was pretty impressive as well. The TPU material did a good job of protecting the shoe from toe dragging where the rubber meets the upper part of the toe. I felt like the outsole durability of this Court FF 3 was pretty comparable to the Nike Vapor 11, but this Court FF 3 was better when it came to toe durability, featuring TPU material instead of the Vapor 11's mesh."

Jason also noticed only light wear. He said, "For as slick as the outsole is, these shoes are surprisingly tough. I really put these through the wringer in my 15-hour playtest, and I do see some tread loss around the forefoot area, but there is plenty of life left. They aren't as durable as the Gel Resolution shoes, but they are close."

Chris is known to be hard on his shoes, both the outsole and the upper toe area. He described, "The Court FF 3s have more durability than I need on the uppers. While I do slide on hard courts, I don't slide to the extent that the medial sides of the shoes contact the court in the midfoot or upper lace eyelets. I do, however, drag the tip of my left shoe, and there’s a lot of scuffing to the upper. At the end of the test, the toe tip was still holding strong with plenty of material left to wear through. On the right, I drag the toe portion of the outsole. The outsole is showing a fair bit of wear, but I still have lots of life left in these shoes."

Traction: 9.2

Thanks to the slicker traction, our playtesters felt like they were moving like Novak in the Court FF 3s. Jason definitely found more give than grip with these outsoles. He said, "I found them the easiest shoes to slide in since, well, the Court FF 2s. So if you like to slide on a hard court, these are the shoes for you. They are slick enough to slide in, but not so slick that the slide felt out of control. And there was enough bite from the soles that I could push off without slippage. As a side bonus, the outsoles of the Court FF 3s seem to be much less squeaky than the Court FF 2’s.”

Chris enjoyed the grip and give from the outsoles of the Court FF 3s. He said, "I found it very easy to control my slides and felt way more balanced and safe than I do in most shoes. I also found ample grip to get me going on fast sprints."

"The first thing I noticed once I started to break these shoes in was that the outsole was slightly on the slicker side, rather than being sticky," agreed Troy. "I found this to work well for me in that there was a bit of give whenever I needed to come to a stop, but it wasn't so slick that I lost my footing or lost force when pushing off. I am not much of a hard court slider, but I could definitely get the feeling that for someone as dynamic as Novak, these should would be great for sliding into shots. When I was in an athletic stance up on the balls of my feet, I felt very confident in my ability to push off and go aggressively toward the next shot."

Even Mark, a playtester who doesn't tend to slide, found success here. He said, "I am not a player who would try to slide on a hard court, but I did occasionally slide into a shot (without trying) in these shoes. Overall, I have to say that the traction was outstanding in the new Asics Court FF 3s on all three hard courts that I played on.”

Weight: 9

Our team thought Asics did a great job distributing the weight of the Asics Court FF 3s. Chris moved around with ease. He said, "My on-court movement felt great in the Court FF 3s. I was able to change directions very quickly, and the shoes felt very light on my feet. I liked the way the shoes transitioned from heel to toe, and I had a very natural feeling flow to my sprints in them. I thought the shoes hid their weight very well, and it was easy to slip these on and not give them a second thought during play."

Jason appreciated the balance of weight to other features. He explained, "Even though these shoes are not lightweight, they did not bother or hinder me. Because the shoes offer so much in terms of stability, support and durability, I knew they weren't going to be super lightweight, and I was fine with that trade-off."

"Both the new Court FF 3s and Gel Resolution 9s gained a little weight over their predecessors, and the Court FF 3s are now a bit heavier than the Gel Resolution 9s," continued Mark. "Personally, I prefer my tennis shoes to err on the side of support instead of lightness because I’m more concerned about landing and stopping comfortably rather than acceleration. The update to the Court FF 3 was substantial enough to allow me to change directions and stop comfortably without ever feeling clunky in terms of acceleration."

Troy wrapped up the playtest on a positive note, saying, "On the scale, these shoes aren't necessarily lightweight, but their feel while moving around is nice and speedy. I think the way the bootie construction hugs my feet and the responsiveness of the FlyteFoam in the midsole makes for an explosive feel. Like the Nike Zoom Vapor 11s, I prefer the added cushioning, support and overall comfort of these shoes, and I would rather have some added weight instead of very light shoes that lack some substance."

Breakdown Summary

I found it very easy to switch between Court FF 3s and Court FF 2s. This third version of the Court FF actually fits my narrow feet a bit better, and I felt even more locked in. I find both shoes excellent options if you like to slide, and I slide better in both compared to the Gel Resolution 8s or 9s.

These shoes are somewhat comparable to the KSwiss Hypercourt Supremes, but with a bit more stability and durability. I also found some similarities to some recent playtest shoes, such as the adidas adizero Cybersonics and Nike Zoom Vapor 11s. The Vapor 11s are a bit more comfortable around the toes, but the Court FF 3s are plusher underneath the feet and slightly more supportive. I really liked the adidas adizero Cybersonics and the way they contoured to my feet, but these Court FF 3s are a bit more plush underfoot and have better ventilation. So overall, these shoes are up there with some of my favorite shoes on the market.

If we are going by weight of shoes, we can compare the Gel Resolution 9, and by that metric, we can also compare the current Nike Zoom Vapor 11s and KSwiss Ultrashot 3s. If I am comparing the fit of the shoes, I can name the New Balance Fresh Foam Lav v2s and adidas adizero Cybersonics, which are a bit lighter but have a similar glove-like fit.

I think the Court FF 3s are very similar to the Court FF 2s, but these shoes felt even easier to slide in and needed a small break-in period.