Why are tennis points 15 30 40?

Answer 1

Sorry for the long answer but there is some background to this:

Tennis was created a while back by the high-class citizens of some country (anyone know?). The high-class citizens wished to keep their game class-specific and therefore they set up the weird scoring in tennis in an attempt to deter the poor from taking up the game. Because the scoring was unusual, the hope was that the lower-class would not be able to understand the game and therefore not take it up.

Answer 2

One explanation about the scoring in Tennis is that has its origin in medieval numerology. The number 60 was considered to be a "good" or "complete" number back then, in about the same way you'd consider 100 to be a nice round figure today. The medieval version of tennis, therefore, was based on 60 -- the four points when 15, 30, 45 (which we abbreviate to 40) and 60, or game. Another explanation states that the scoring system was adopted from another game called Sphairistike, which was played by the sailors. The game's scoring system was based on the guns of the ship, being the smallest 15's, then 30's and then 40's. And finally another explanation says that a clock was used for scoring and that each point represented a position on the clock's face; 15, 30, 45. Only 45 was changed to 40 later... However, there is some debate over the origin of "love". Some say it's French, "l'oeuf", meaning "egg", which looks like a zero. Others say it's an English term, along the lines of "playing for love" (as in, if you're scoring zero, you must be playing because you love it, because you're not good at it.) The first reference the OED can find is in 1742, in English, but the origin is still unclear.. ."Deuce," on the other hand, comes from the French for two "deux", meaning you have two more points to go to win the game.

Answer 3

The origins are thought to be medieval French by using a clock face as a method of recording the score. A quarter move of the hand indicated the score of 15, 30 or 45 and when the score moved to 60 the game was over. To make the score stay within 60 of the clock face, 45 was changed to 40. If both players have 40, the first player to score receives 10 and the clock moves to 50. If the player scores again (before his opponent) then the clock moves to 60 and that is the end of the game. Howerer, if the player fails to score, the clock moves back to 40 and establishes a 'deuce' until one player wins twice and then the clock moves to 60 and the game is ended

Answer 4

well.. somebody had told me that in the past the number 60 was considered a fine round number(the same way we consider the number 100 now) so tennis points were fractions of the 60 .. 15,30,45-later abbreviated to 40. Ayman

Answer 5

15 30 and 40 originated because clocks were used to keep the score in a game. before deuce (40-40) was introduced, the scores were 15 30 and 45, but after deuce was introduced, they changed it to 40 so that ad-in and ad-out could have a place at the 50 minute mark.

Answer 6

-Lawn tennis scoring probably comes from the face of a clock with its four quarters-15, 30, and 45 (shortened to 40).-'Deuce' may have been a deux, the French term for the two points needed to win from 40-40 -'Love' may be from the French l'oeuf, meaning "the egg"-an object with a zero shape. Or, perhaps it was a way of saying "nothing", as in a "labour of love." Got this from a poster at the Tennis Museum at Wimbledon.

Answer 7

The origins fo the scoring system are a little vague - however - I found an article in Wikipedia that explains a couple of theories dating back to the origin of the game. See related link for more information.

Answer 8

Why do we score 15-30-40 game?=This is because for as long as the game has been played, this is how it's been.=