NIAGARA FALLS, Ont. — A new season of the Grand Slam of Curling is on the horizon with the start of the HearingLife Tour Challenge.
Featuring a total of 64 teams in action, the HearingLife Tour Challenge is the largest event in the series. The action begins Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. ET at the Gale Centre and runs through to the championship finals Sunday.
Here’s a primer on what you need to know for the HearingLife Tour Challenge.
FIRST END: WHAT’S THE FORMAT?
The HearingLife Tour Challenge is split into two tiers with 32 men’s teams and 32 women’s teams. Tier 1 features the top-ranked teams from around the world with the next ranked group of teams in Tier 2.
All divisions are split into four pools for the round-robin stage. Teams play four games against teams from an opposite pool, e.g. Pool A teams face Pool D teams, Pool B teams face Pool C teams. The top eight teams overall, regardless of pools, qualify for the playoffs.
SECOND END: WHAT’S NEW FOR 2023?
The tiebreaker scenario is the biggest change. There will no longer be a tiebreaker draw in any Grand Slam of Curling event with the exception of the Princess Auto Players’ Championship starting this season.
If teams are tied for the final playoff spot(s), their draw-to-the-button shootout totals will determine who advances. This applies to both the men’s and women’s divisions in both tiers.
THIRD END: WHAT’S AT STAKE IN THE TIER 2?
While the Tier 1 teams battle for the big prize, winners of the Tier 2 will receive byes to the Co-op Canadian Open running Jan. 16-24, 2024, at Servus Arena in Red Deer, Alta. Think of it like a fast-track ticket to the top group. The winning team’s entry fee will also be waived and $5,000 will be given to the team to cover costs of travel and accommodation.
There will be new Tier 2 champions crowned. Team Dropkin and Team Grandy won the men’s and women’s championships, respectively, last year in Grande Prairie, Alta., and both are now firmly in Tier 1.
FOURTH END: TIER 1 MEN’S DIVISION TEAMS TO WATCH
No skip in the field has won more Grand Slam of Curling titles than Brad Gushue, who has 14 to his name. You will also not find a more consistent team as Gushue’s crew from St. John’s, N.L., has qualified for the playoffs in 26 consecutive Grand Slam of Curling tournaments. Taking that a step further, Gushue has made it to the semifinals in 15 of the past 16 events in the series.
Calgary’s Team Bottcher won two Grand Slam of Curling championships during the back half of last season and has continued its winning ways into the 2023-24 campaign winning three titles on tour already.
Team Carruthers cashed in at the PointsBet Invitational in Oakville, Ont., successfully defending the title. The difference this year is the Winnipeg-based club now has a new ace in hand with Brad Jacobs at third. Could a Grand Slam of Curling title be next in the cards?
When we last saw Team Koe in the Grand Slam of Curling, the Calgary club captured the prestigious Princess Auto Players’ Championship with a clutch shot from the skip on the last rock of the final. Second Brad Thiessen went out on a high note with Jacques Gauthier now filling in his shoes (not literally). How will the retooled roster fare?
The event’s defending men’s champion is Team Edin, which won the title last season without its skip. Niklas Edin went down with a knee injury during warmups for the semifinals and the Swedish squad carried on as a trio. Third Oskar Eriksson took the reins and threw the last rock. Edin, who also won the Tour Challenge in 2016, will now look to become the first to three-peat on the men’s side in the event.
FIFTH END: TIER 1 WOMEN’S DIVISION TEAMS TO WATCH
Defending champion Team Homan from Ottawa enters the event undefeated on the season after going 8-0 through the Saville Shootout in Edmonton (with Heather Nedohin subbing for skip Rachel Homan) and 4-0 through the PointsBet Invitational. Homan also won the most recent Grand Slam of Curling women’s title at last season’s KIOTI Tractor Champions Cup in May.
Four-time reigning world champion Team Tirinzoni has also been hot out of the gate going unbeaten in September through the Women’s Masters Basel on home ice in Switzerland plus the AMJ Campbell Shorty Jenkins Classic in Cornwall, Ont. Strong starts appear to be key for Tirinzoni, who won last season’s first Grand Slam of Curling event at the National and also captured the inaugural Tour Challenge title in 2015.
Sweden’s Team Wranå wrapped up its 2022-23 season winning the Princess Auto Players’ Championship in April. What’s in store for an encore Grand Slam performance?
Team Einarson of Gimli, Man., was almost always a sure bet to reach the finals last season. Einarson made it to the championship game in five of the six Grand Slam of Curling events with a title victory at the WFG Masters. The Princess Auto Players’ Championship was the outlier, although was a new finals streak started for Einarson at the KIOTI Tractor Champions Cup?
Team Gim is already in mid-season form, which kind of makes sense considering the club started its season in June winning the Korean National Curling Championship. Gim, ranked No. 1 on year-to-date points, claimed the Curlers Corner Autumn Gold Curling Classic over Thanksgiving weekend in Calgary.
SIXTH END: TIER 2 MEN’S DIVISION TEAMS TO WATCH
Mike McEwen has won seven top-tier Grand Slam of Curling titles but will now aim for the Tier 2 men’s title with his new Saskatoon-based club to get back into the top group. McEwen has reached the semifinals in his first three tournaments this season.
Ontario’s very own John Epping, who has won three Grand Slams as a skip, is also looking to get back on track and into the top flight with his Toronto team.
Winnipeg’s Team Wiebe ousted Team Epping and Saskatoon’s Team Kleiter upset Team Koe during the opening round at the PointsBet Invitational. Wiebe and Kleiter will be intriguing ones to ones to watch, particularly when they face each other Wednesday.
Japan’s Team Morozumi has won two titles on tour already this season including the Stu Sells Tankard in Barrie, Ontario, just this past weekend.
Scotland’s Team Mouat and Team Whyte are already firmly in the top tier but watch out for compatriots Team Craik and Team Bryce as they’re knocking on the door and could be next to make the leap.
SEVENTH END: TIER 2 WOMEN’S DIVISION TEAMS TO WATCH
Team Black from Dartmouth, N.S., could be considered the favourite as the highest-ranked club in the division. Black finished fourth at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts last season and just made it to the semifinals of the PointsBet Invitational.
Team Strouse is also buzzing after earning silver at the USA Curling national championships last season. Strouse has already played in three finals this season with title wins at the Euro Super Series in Stirling, Scotland, and the Mother Club Fall Curling Classic in Winnipeg.
Who could forget Team Kim? The South Korean club caught the world’s attention with a silver medal finish on home ice at the 2018 Winter Olympic Games. Kim captured the Stu Sells Tankard in Barrie over Thanksgiving weekend.
Japan’s Team Yoshimura was a finalist in this event in 2018 and also finished runner-up in a top-tier Grand Slam the following season at the Masters. Yoshimura kicked off the season winning the Hokkaido Bank Curling Classic and recently finished second in back-to-back tour events at the Shorty Jenkins Classic and the Stu Sells Tankard.
EIGHTH END: HOW TO WATCH
Can’t make it to Niagara Falls? Broadcast coverage begins Thursday at 11:30 a.m. ET / 8:30 a.m. PT on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+. Check sportsnet.ca/schedule for the full broadcast schedule.