Kylen writes: Hi, Kip. I love watching
football, but sometimes I feel like the
way the NFL does overtime isn’t
exactly right. First off, I think the
home team captain should get to call
the toss. If it’s your field, you get the
honors. Also, I think that no matter
what, both teams should get an
opportunity on offense. It isn’t
necessarily fair that all one team
has to do is drive down and get a
touchdown, while the other team
has to try to prevent that from
happening. That puts a lot of
pressure on the defense.
(P.S. Have you ever considered
titling your column “The Whole
Kip and Caboodle”?)
Kylen—you wouldn’t happen to live in
Buffalo, would you? After that Bills–
Chiefs playoff game, I’d bet everyone
is rethinking the NFL’s playoff
rules—especially the NFL. Here’s an
idea you won’t see anywhere else:
penalty kicks. So many games get
decided by a high-pressure boot from
the place kicker. Why not go to a
kickoff? And it’s NHL shootout rules:
After the kicker and punter go, the
other players have to start trying.
Imagine a 3 00-pound lineman kicking
an extra point to win the Super Bowl!
And there’s a goalie suspended by
wires between the uprights, like
Spider-Man. By the way, I like your
idea for the name of my column.
That’s the kind of top-notch punnery
we could use at SI KIDS. I’ve told my
editors to step up their games.
Clayton writes: Dear Kip, this is Clayton Robins from Denver, Colo. I have a
question. A few months ago I was watching golf with my dad, and Jordan
Spieth and Henrik Stenson were hitting, but they were on the wrong tee
box and didn’t know, and then hit. This counted as a two-stroke penalty,
and I don’t think that’s fair. Also, I think there should be someone there to
say, “Hey Jordan, Henrik, wrong tee. This way.” Your biggest fan, Clayton.
Clayton, you’re just in time for the
Ref Issue! We’ve talked to some of
the top officials across sports (p. 34 )
and we’re in a unique position to sort
out of some of sports’ silliest rules.
Fortunately for us—and
unfortunately for Spieth and
Stenson—no sport’s rules are as
unpredictable as golf’s. In 2 019,
Russell Henley discovered a ball that
wasn’t his usual brand in his bag
while signing autographs for fans.
After reporting the confounding ball
to tournament officials, he was
assessed an eight-stroke penalty!
That minor mix-up—discovered after
his round—meant he missed the cut.
Also in 2 019, Paul Casey won the
European Championship. But he
almost blew it when a putt rolled
over a caterpillar. I won’t go on—we
need to save some these weird rulesDSAMAVID GREE E. KLUTHO (CHNWOOD/GETTY IEFS); BRAIMAGEDS PE (SNNPIETH AER/UNDSA TO STEDAY NSOSNPORT) S (DEGROM); SIKIDS.COM/ 17
WARMUP
for future editions of “What’s the
Call?” Ironically, golf is the one major
sport notable for its inconspicuous
officials. But I think you’re right—there
should be a person at each hole
directing traffic. Sportsmanship is
thinking it’s better to beat someone at
their best than to win on a technicality.
That’s something Penny and Whitney—
who challenge me in Madden only
when I’m sleepy after eating a plate of
cookies—will ever understand.