🚨 Pickle Trouble On the Mean Streets in one California City

In This Issue:

• 🎾 A tennis rule you didn’t know existed (but have definitely broken)

• 🔇 Pickleball drama, brought to you by… the noise police?

• 🚨 Rules in the News: MLB suspensions, tush push votes, and Olympic dreams

• 🏌️‍♂️ How one rural Nebraska golf course became a viral sensation

• ⌚ WIN a $299 GPS Golf Watch just by referring 3 friends

Let’s get into it!

WIN THIS NEW RELEASE BLUE TEES golf watch

You have time to win this brand-new, just released Blue Tees Golf PlayMaker+ GPS Golf Watch, valued at $299.

This watch has it all: 42,000+ preloaded courses, it offers GPS distances, shot tracking, scorekeeping, weather, and more—all on a vivid AMOLED touchscreen that keeps you focused on your game.

How to win? Simple.

Get 3 friends to join this Un-Ruley Sportsman newsletter!

Hit the Click to Share button at the bottom of this email.

Send your unique code to a bunch of friends that love sports and how it can sometimes be a bit Un-Ruley. 😜

Boom. 💥💥 Then you’ll be entered into a draw to win the watch. It’s that easy!

*Contest ends June 30th

🤬 CAUGHT IN A PICKLE

California City Bans Noisy Pickleball Paddles (Yup, For Real)

🤫 PICKLEBALL HAS QUIET PADDLES NOW?

You knew this day was coming if you’ve been paying attention.

In Laguna Beach, CA—land of ocean breezes and passive-aggressive HOA meetings—pickleball paddles are now regulated by sound. That’s right! Locals near the courts complained so much about the loud pop-pop, the city was forced to pass an ordinance that requires all players use “quiet paddles only.”

No joke. And there will be more now that quiet paddles exist!

It’s part of a growing trend: cities like Denver (Congress Park) have gone so far as to remove courts entirely because of noise. Looks like pickleball isn’t just America’s fastest-growing sport—it might also be its most noisy.

📣 Moral of the story: Let’s all get along. If you’re a pickleball player, be happy you get to play and have courts with pickleball only lines on it. Please, respect your surrounding peeps, and have a bit of etiquette if your go-to court is near homes or somewhere it could disturb others, swap out your paddle for a quiet paddle!

📬 Do You Have A Real Sports Story To Share?

We’d love to hear from you! Share your crazy, hilarious, epic, and wild tales of sports rules and decorum gone wrong with us, and we may highlight them for our newsletter audience. Send your stories here: [email protected]

🏓 ⛳️ 🐎 MAJOR SPORTS EVENTS THIS WEEK

🏎 Auto Racing
Spanish Grand Prix
June 1 | Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya

Cracker Barrel 400
June 1 | Nashville Superspeedway

🥒 Pickleball
MLP Pickleball Tournament
May 29–June 1 | Arizona Athletic Grounds

🎾 Tennis 
French Open (Roland Garros)
May 25–June 8 | Paris, France

⛳ Golf
The Memorial Tournament
May 29–June 1 | Muirfield Village Golf Club, Dublin, Ohio

🔎 RULEY EXPLORES THE RULEBOOKS 🔍

🎾 Obscure Tennis Rule: The “Hindrance” You Didn’t Know You Caused

You grunt too loudly during your opponent’s swing? Accidentally drop your racquet mid-point? Shout “OUT!” before the ball hits?

That’s a violation.

According to the ITF Rules of Tennis, any deliberate or unintentional distraction that affects your opponent’s ability to play the point can result in a “hindrance” fault (Rule 23). And yes, your opponent can claim the point if the chair umpire agrees.

There are two types of “hindrance.”

1. Deliberate Hindrance: If a player is hindered by an opponent's deliberate act, the hindered player wins the point.

   Examples could include:

   • Yelling or making noises intended to distract the opponent.

   • Waving arms or rackets to disrupt the opponent's focus.

   • Intentionally throwing a racket or other object.

2. Unintentional Hindrance: If a player is hindered by an unintentional act of the opponent or by something outside of either player's control, the point is replayed.

   Examples could include:

   • A player's hat or clothing item falls onto the court.

   • A ball from an adjacent court rolls onto the playing court.

   • A bee sting or sudden injury. 

📚 Cited: ITF Rules of Tennis, Rule 23 — “Player Hindrance”

🧠 Why it matters: That random grunt you make when you’re trying to go for it on your first serve? Yeah, it could cost you the set.

📰 Un-Ruley Sports In the News

A look at the un-ruley, unsportsmanlike headlines shaped by the rules of the game.

⚾ MLB Suspends Star Pitcher for 80 Games
Cleveland Guardians ace Triston McKenzie was hit with an 80-game ban after testing positive for PEDs. The rule’s clear—and the punishment, even clearer. 🔗 Read more

🇺🇸🏃 NFL Players in the Olympics? Yep, for Flag Football
Starting in 2028, NFL stars can compete for Olympic gold in flag football. Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson is already eyeing the podium. 🔗 Read more

🏈 NFL Votes on “Tush Push” — Eagles Troll Packers Immediately
The league voted to keep the Eagles’ infamous short-yardage “tush push” play. Philly didn’t wait long—posting a video on X and rubbing it in Green Bay’s face. Butt-hurt? Too bad! Not them. 🔗 Read more

⛳️ GOOD STUFF ⛳️

 If You Dream It, Design It, and Build It: They Will Come

In the middle of Nowhere, Nebraska (technically, it’s in Homer), sits one of the most sought-after golf destinations in America: Landmand Golf Club. And yes, it’s public.

Built by dreamers at King-Collins Design, Landmand is bold, brutal, and breathtaking—a 7,200-yard cornfield turned golf cathedral. When 2025 tee times were released, they sold out in just 50 minutes.

It’s already inspired a documentary (check out the trailer) on Golf Channel and a pile of press from GOLF.com, WSJ, and Golfweek. Not bad for a public course miles and miles from anything resembling a city.

📺 So, what makes it special?

• Sweeping elevation changes across a former grain farm

• Minimalist design with maximum character

• A fan-fueled origin story that bucks every “traditional” rule of building a golf course

🚩 Moral of the story: If you build it—and it’s really freaking cool—they will come. In droves.