Tennis Scoring

Tennis can be enjoyed -- and frequently is -- without ever playing an actual scored game. People get together and just rally, i.e. hit the ball back and forth for the sheer fun of it. Sometimes they'll try to keep the ball in play for as long as possible instead of trying to win the point. But as fun as this is (and it really can be a ball). eventually, you'll want to play a full-fledged game.

Tennis scoring takes a little getting used to. Generally, people play a set, or best out of three sets. Each set consists of a number of games. The first person to win six games wins the set, so the smallest number of games in a set would be six (if the score were 6-0). However, to win a set you must win by two games, so if the score is 5-5, the set will go on till someone wins by two (7-5, 8-6, etc.), kind of like extra innings in baseball. In many competitions, players play a tiebreaker if the set is tied 6-6 instead of fighting it out for a two-game lead.

Each game is scored in the following way. Love means zero; the first point scored is 15, the second point 30, the third point 40, and next point is game. Once again, a player needs to win a game by two points, so if the score is 40-40 it's called deuce, and then the next player to win a point has what's called advantage. If the same player wins the next point, the game is over. If he loses it, the score returns to deuce.

The same person serves the ball throughout the entire game (the next player serves the next game, and they alternate until the set is over). The server's score is always said first. Like a lot of things, it sounds a lot more complicated on paper than it is in real life.

Here's an imaginary game played between two players, John and Susan:

(John serves) 1st point: John wins score: 15-Love
2nd point: John wins score: 30-Love
3rd point: Susan wins score: 30-15
4th point: Susan wins score: 30-30
5th point: Susan wins score: 40-30
6th point: John wins score: deuce (40-40)
7th point: John wins score: advantage John (since John is the server, this is called "advantage in")
8th point: Susan wins score: deuce
9th point: Susan wins score: advantage Susan (since John is the server, this is called "advantage out")
10th point: Susan wins score: game (Susan has won by the two points necessary to win the game)< br>
At this point, Susan would become the server, and the second game would proceed.