Any Chance They Could Make Offer Retroactive?

At Coach Lon Kruger’s suggestion, the Atlanta Hawks will pay every season-ticket holder $125 if the team doesn’t make the playoffs next season.

That could cost the Hawks $500,000. If the Hawks advance to the playoffs, season-ticket holders will get free tickets to the first playoff game.

“I expect this team to make the playoffs,” Hawk President Stan Kasten said.

He could have added that Kruger might be in trouble if it doesn’t.

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Trivia time: Who were the first USC and UCLA players drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers?

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Mind games: Davis Love III, commenting on Tiger Woods’ psychological advantage: “You have to learn to play the way he plays and not the way he wants you to play, which is worrying about him.

“He plays his game and doesn’t care about you. We’ve got to play our game and not play to him.”

Easier said than done.

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Dream on: Rick Reilly in Sports Illustrated: “Just once before you die, wouldn’t you love to see ...

* “An NFL player beat his chest after tackling a running back for a two-yard gain, then point to the sky, thanking God, and get struck by lightning?

* “Coach Lou Holtz describe South Carolina’s next opponent as ‘worse than pitiful. These guys couldn’t beat the Asthma Institute.’

“Rasheed Wallace stick his hand in the air after being called for a foul.”

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Get used to it: LPGA Tour player Beth Daniel, on television announcers’ fascination with her age: “It really bugged me that they kept saying, ‘45-year-old Beth Daniel for a birdie,’ ‘45-year-old Beth Daniel teeing off.’

“It was like ‘45-year-old’ was my new first name.”

Don’t sweat it, Beth. When you turn 46, you’ll have a new name.

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Ugh! Brenda Lashley brought a secret weapon to this year’s sauerkraut-eating championships at Franksville, Wis. She was eating for two.

Lashley, who is seven months pregnant, gobbled more than a pound of sauerkraut to become the women’s sauerkraut-eating world champion.

“I hope he likes it,” Lashley said of her unborn child, while admitting she’s not too fond of the food herself.

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They’ll watch anything: Comedy writer Alan Ray in the San Francisco Chronicle: “The World Cup has given advertisers a golden opportunity to zero in on a key target audience in the U.S.--18-to-35-year-old insomniacs.”

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Looking back: On this day in 1939, Brooklyn and Boston played for 23 innings and more than five hours before settling for a 2-2 tie at Braves Field.

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Trivia answer: USC’s John Werhas in 1960 and UCLA’s Bill Ellis in 1961, both in the eighth round.

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And finally: Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle has made up his own Sports Bill of Rights, including Ballplayers Have the Right to Be Arrogant:

“Nearly every sports hero who has a superiority complex has come by it honestly. Home run hitters are criticized for standing at home plate and admiring their work. When Michelangelo finished a ceiling, did he toss aside his brush and trot quickly out of the building?”