There were several good arguments for this: it's how Windows works with
WM_NCHITTEST, SDL doesn't need to manage a list of rects, it allows more
control over the regions (how do you use rects to cleanly surround a circular
button?), the callback can be more optimized than a iterating a list of
rects, and you don't have to send an updated list of rects whenever the
window resizes or layout changes.
Ryan C. Gordon