TENNIS

The game of tennis has been around in different forms since the

fifth century B.C. There have even been drawings of people hitting a ball back and forth found in ancient caves. Tennis is the second most played sport in the world. With its ease of play and universal appeal it is not hard to see why. To understand the game of tennis you have to start out at its roots. The true precursor to the game we play today originated in thirteenth century France. The game was started by monks playing in monastery courtyards. They would take sticks or their hands and bat a wooden ball back and forth. As the Middle Ages came to a close, “royal” or “real” tennis was adopted by the royalty. They called the new sport jea de paume, which means “the game of the palm.” Royal tennis was played indoors in narrow rooms where the object was to hit the ball through passages with the least amount of bounces. Gloves were eventually used to prevent blisters, which then gave way to the use of wooden bats. These bats, varying in size and shape, progressed into strung racquets. The royal families at that time coined the name tennis from the French word Tenez, which means “here you are,” or “here, catch.” To put a ball into play is called service. This was begun because the aristocrats that played thought it was too menial of a task to begin play and had their servants start the play instead. The game of tennis has been scored the same wince its beginnings. The points are awarded in sets of 15 for each successful win. Each player starts at zero, known as love. There are many stories for the origin of using love as zero, but the most widely accepted story is the French word oeuf, which means egg. The shape of the egg is symbolic of zero. The first won shot gives you 15; the next point awarded is 30. The word “forty,” which comes after 30, is actually an abbreviation of 45.