While there is an official set of rules published every few years by the United States Golf Association (USGA), the rule book essentially relies on this fundamental principle: play the ball as it lies, play the course as you find it, and if you cannot do either, do what is fair. In all rulebooks, golf etiquette and the honor system are stressed more than in other sports. Usually played over an expansive area, golfing lacks referees and clear course boundaries. Except for instances in high-stakes tournaments, all players are unmonitored and expected to play honestly and fairly. Before the rules of the sport were standardized, each golf club had its own set of rules. In 1744, however, the Gentlemen Golfers of Leith recorded the first written rules of the game. These were entitled “Articles and Laws in Playing Golf” and consisted of 13 points.
