Tennis is more than a sport—it’s a language. A rhythm. A tradition. And at the heart of that tradition is a scoring system that’s equal parts elegant, eccentric, and enduring. From the curious use of “love” to the non-linear leap from 15 to 30 to 40, tennis scoring doesn’t follow the rules—it writes its own. If you're asking, "how does tennis scoring work"?, here’s the story behind how the game is scored, why we say “love,” and what makes this part of tennis so iconic—and so perfectly Forty-Love.
Let’s unravel the mystery, one point at a time.
The Rhythm of the Rally: Why We Score 15, 30, 40
Most sports give it to you straight. 1–0, 2–1, easy. But not tennis. Tennis said: let’s spice it up.
The most popular theory is that the scoring dates back to 16th-century France. Picture this: a quaint game called jeu de paume (a precursor to modern tennis), played with your palm and some serious court etiquette. Instead of using points, they used a clock face to keep score.
- The first point? 15
- Win another? 30
- One more? 40 (this used to be 45 but that got shortened to 40—because '45' took too long to say mid-rally, apparently)
- Then? Game—but only if you’re ahead by two points.
Simple? Not quite. Elegant? Absolutely.
If both players hit 40, it’s called deuce. From there, you have to win two points in a row: one to gain the advantage, and one to win the game.
A set is won when a player reaches six games, with at least a two-game margin (so 6–4 is fine, but 6–5 means keep playing). At 6–6, most formats now use a tiebreaker, played to seven points—but again, with a two-point margin.
Matches are typically played best of three sets (or five in Grand Slams for men), and yes—every point, game, and set has its own mini-arc.
It’s a structure built for suspense. Momentum shifts, comebacks happen, and the game can turn on a single point. It’s what makes tennis so thrilling—not just to play, but to watch.
At Forty-Love, we love that the sport demands both strategy and style. Every rally is a chance to reset, rethink, and refine—and that’s a mindset we bring into every stitch of what we create.
Now, Let’s Talk About ‘Love’
At Forty-Love, we’re very interested in this one. In tennis, “love” means zero—but why call it something so sweet?
One theory is that love comes from the French word l’oeuf, which means egg (as in: an egg looks like a zero). The English, hearing it, might’ve borrowed the pronunciation but swapped in their own meaning.
Another theory is more poetic: if you're on zero, you're playing for the love of the game - we're going with this one.
The Art of the Advantage: Why Tennis Doesn’t Always Tiebreak
The modern tiebreak (where players count 1, 2, 3, etc.) was only introduced in the 1970s to speed up those never-ending sets. Before that, tennis purists insisted a match wasn’t truly won unless you earned it by a margin of two games.
That’s why you only see tiebreaks come in at 6-6—they’re a relatively modern addition to what was otherwise a very historic, very particular scoring system.
A Love That Lasts: The Legacy of Tennis Scoring
So while tennis scoring might not make perfect sense on the surface, it’s part of the sport’s enduring charm. From court traditions to couture, tennis has always played by its own rules.
And at Forty-Love, we think that’s part of the magic.