I’ve always felt that having a great badminton bag is one of the most integral pieces of equipment that you can pick up as a new player. In fact, I purchased a bag long before I bought badminton-specific shoes.
My main problem was this: I hate showing up to play looking like a bag lady. Several racquets, a water bottle, badminton shoes, grip powder, birdies, and then all of the normal things like my wallet, phones, keys, etc. It was just a crap show.
The best badminton bag provides more than just a spot of stow crap, although that is important. It always you to get ready to play faster, protects your gear, and keeps you from looking like a moron. At least if you don’t act like a moron in other ways.
Characteristics Of The Best Badminton Bag: Buying Guide
If you play badminton, tennis, or anything else with a racquet you can understand the necessity of a perfect badminton racket bag. Racquets can suck to carry around, especially if you are a racquet hoarder like I am.
It is for everybody whether you are a beginner or a professional. With the right badminton bag, you will be prepared to go to the badminton court and play.
However, the bag you choose is probably going to be highly individual for your specific situation. This means I guess that giving you a bit of information about myself would be helpful in knowing if Yonex would be a good fit for you as well.
I have been playing badminton for almost 16 years. I consider myself an upper-level hobby player and sporadically plan in local tournaments. I try to play 2-3 times per week and I’m the guy at every family reunion who’s setting up a badminton net. I take my gear fairly seriously but have a ton of it. If that sounds anything like you…hit me up…let’s play haha
Choosing a badminton-specific bag isn’t easy. The problem is that none of my local stores stock badminton bags. Or much of anything. Blame it on the rural area I was shopping in but I couldn’t find anything that fit my weeks.
So here’s what I did.
I make a list of characteristics/features I wanted in my bag and then cruised the internet for bags that met those criteria. There were surprisingly few.
Here are the characteristics I used to narrow down my search:
Carry Style
When I played highschool baseball I had a bat bag that had to be carried sling-style on one shoulder. That one strap gave me scoliosis man! Admittedly I felt that I needed a huge bag to be cool (even though I literally owned a single bat) and bought an 8-bat bag that should have been sufficient for the whole team. Consequently, I ended up carrying bats for several of my team-members. And probably their cleats and mitts too, I forget.
My racquet is obviously a bit lighter than my bats were, but all of that was a long-winded way of saying that I wanted a badminton bag that could be carried back-pack style. Many bags have different strap configuration options but I wasn’t ever interested in carrying it with a single strap. This ousted 80% of badminton bags right off the bat which really simplified things.
Along with the style of carrying, I wanted comfortable straps. No simple strips of nylon webbing for me.
Material
I didn’t know what type of material I wanted my bag to be made out of but it had to be super durable, weather-resistant, and breathable enough that my shoes can air out. It turns out that nearly all badminton bags are made out of some sort of polyester. Don’t buy anything that isn’t or it will fall short. Look for non-fading polyester fabric and you’ll have a bag that breaths well, dries quickly, etc.
Size
My badminton bags carry between 3 and 12 racquets (usually in multiples of 3 for some reason). I opted for a bag in the 6-racquet range because I wanted something that could hold everything in my arsenal that I wanted to play with.
I briefly considered a smaller bag but it didn’t appeal to me to have several racquets at home that I would have to find a place for and rotate in/out of my bag. And the idea of being at the court and wanting to play with my new racquet only to find out that I had left it at home? Forget it. I needed a bag that was both travel-ready and could function as storage.
It’s also worth nothing here that I wanted a badminton bag that was also capable of carrying my tennis racquet. That way I could always be prepared for a challenge if the desire struck.
Compartments
If you were that kid in high school who dumped everything into the main pocket of your backpack and let it intermingle, we probably can’t be friends. Or, at least, you can’t use my badminton bag. Any good bag will have ample compartments to keep things separate.
In my bag, I have to carry shuttlecocks, racquets, tennis balls, etc. I don’t really want everything getting too friendly with my keys or water bottle. Instead, I group things by similar types and put them together. Any bag I got had to have at least 4 pockets to be considered “the best”.
One compartment that I wasn’t willing to compromise on is a shoe area. I do not like my shoes walking on my stuff when I’m not in them. Or, probably worse, stinking up my water, gloves, etc. I looked for a bag with a separate zipped shoe compartment that could be opened from the outside.
Closures
Pretty much every badminton bag has a zipper closure of varying quality. Many also feel the need to employ some sort of toggles or velcro strips. I looked for a bag with a high-quality zipper and no unnecessary closures. I like things strong and simple.
Conclusion:
It probably sounds a bit cliche but, at the end of the day, the best badminton bag is the one that fits your needs (and gear) the best. The Yonex is an amazing bag and works perfectly for me. If you are in a similar position, you’ll love it too! However, whatever option you choose, don’t forget that it’s only a means to get to an end (meaning the court). Happy playing!
