And Even If a Horse Impeed Thy Ball, Thou Shouldst Playeth It Where It Lye

The original 13 rules of golf, as drawn up by the Company of Gentlemen Golfers in 1744:

“Articles & Laws in Playing at Golf--

“1. You must Tee your Ball, within a Club’s length of the Hole.

“2. Your Tee must be upon the Ground.

“3. You are not to change the Ball which you Stroke off the Tee.

“4. You are not to remove Stones, Bones or any Break Club, for the sake of playing your Ball, Except upon the fair Green & that only within a Club’s length of your Ball.

“5. If your Ball come among Watter or any wattery filth, you are at liberty to take out your Ball & bringing it behind the hazard and Teeing it, you may play it with any Club and allow your Adversary a Stroke, for so getting out your Ball.

“6. If your Balls be found any where touching one another, you are to lift the first Ball till you play the last.

“7. At Holling, you are to play your Ball honestly for the Hole, and, not to play upon you Adversary’s Ball, noy lying in your way to the Hole.

“8. If you should lose your Ball, by it’s being taken up, or any other way, you are to go back to the Spot where you struck last, & drop another Ball, and allow your adversary a Stroke for the misfortune.

“9. No man at Holling his Ball, is to be allowed to mark his way to the Hole with his Club or anything else.

“10. If a Ball be stopp’d by any person, Horse, Dog, or anything else, The Ball as stopp’d must be played where it lyes.

“11. If you draw your Club, in order to Strikes & proceed so far in the Stroke as to be bringing down your Club; If then, your Club shall break in any way, it to be accounted a Stroke.

“12. He whose Ball lyes farthest from the Hole is obliged to play first.

“13. Neither French, Ditch or Dyke, made for the preservation of the Links, nor the Scholar’s Holes or the Soldier’s Lines, Shall be accounted a Hazard, But the Ball is to be taken out Teed and played with any Iron Club.”