"Money is just a way of keeping score"
About this Quote
The intent is clarifying, but also disarming. Hunt frames wealth as information, not power. That move matters because power invites scrutiny: Who sets the rules? Who gets fouled? Who never even gets to play? “Keeping score” implies a fair game with agreed-upon metrics, as if markets are impartial referees rather than systems built by policy, privilege, and access. The subtext is paternalistic reassurance to the rich and a quiet rebuke to anyone who questions the game: don’t moralize, just count.
Context sharpens the edge. Hunt rose with oil, an industry that turned geology into empire and federal decisions into fortunes. In that world, money isn’t just tallying success; it is the instrument that buys leverage - land, media, lawmakers, and time. Calling it “just” a score is both self-mythologizing and strategic understatement, a billionaire’s way of making conquest sound like bookkeeping.
Quote Details
| Topic | Money |
|---|---|
| Source | Later attribution: Money From Nothing (Robert Hockett, Aaron James, 2020) modern compilationISBN: 9781612198576 · ID: h1fEDwAAQBAJ
Evidence: ... Money is just a way of keeping score . " So said the Texas oil tycoon H. L. Hunt , who was reputed to be the richest man in the world by his death in 1974. He probably wasn't thinking of monetary metaphysics in the way that we are , but ... Other candidates (1) Hunter S. Thompson (H. L. Hunt) compilation50.0% because they are usually none too bright or maybe stupid is a better way of say |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Hunt, H. L. (2026, January 13). Money is just a way of keeping score. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/money-is-just-a-way-of-keeping-score-95791/
Chicago Style
Hunt, H. L. "Money is just a way of keeping score." FixQuotes. January 13, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/money-is-just-a-way-of-keeping-score-95791/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"Money is just a way of keeping score." FixQuotes, 13 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/money-is-just-a-way-of-keeping-score-95791/. Accessed 6 Feb. 2026.








