Mouat wins Kioti National to claim third straight Grand Slam men’s title

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Bruce Mouat scored another hat trick in the Grand Slam of Curling.

Mouat and his Scottish squad earned a third consecutive men’s title in the series after defeating Canada’s Team Brad Jacobs 5-3 during Sunday’s final at the KIOTI National.

It’s also the ninth Grand Slam championship for Mouat, third Grant Hardie, second Bobby Lammie and lead Hammy McMillan Jr., who finished the tournament with a 6-1 record to cash in $38,000 from the prize purse.

"It’s kind of incredible," said Mouat, who won his first Grand Slam seven years ago at the National. "I saw the footage of us back in 2017 when we won it, so there are a few more wrinkles on the face and a few more grey hairs as well. It’s incredible to think back to that long ago and realize the journey was just beginning for us then. 

"The legends that we’re now being recognized with is just incredible to all of us because we grew up knowing these people or wanting to get close to where they potentially were and to actually realize that we’re doing it is incredible."

Team Mouat won three straight Slams in 2021 after sweeping the Champions Cup and Players’ Championship in the Calgary bubble then defeated Jacobs, coincidentally enough, to take the Masters the following season in Oakville, Ont.

"I don’t know if it means that it’s extra special but it’s just incredible that we’ve had this consistency this season," Mouat said. "We did it really well the time before, but we were two in one season and one in the next season. I’m just really proud of us that we’ve held that consistency for what now, four months? We’ve had a really strong season so far."

Mouat also took sole possession of fourth place on the all-time men’s skip title wins list as he was previously tied with Wayne Middaugh. Kevin Martin (18), Brad Gushue (15) and Glenn Howard (14) are the only curlers who have won more as a skip than Mouat.

"Bruce is such a humble guy he will not see himself in the same sentence as those guys but when you put it on paper, he is one of the best skips to play the game now," Hardie said. "Lucky to be a part of it." 

Hardie also praised the Mary Brown's Centre crowd, which had packed the stands all week and brought the energy to a whole new level. 

"That one hits a little different," Hardie said. "That crowd today and all week was phenomenal. I think us curlers were very fortunate to play in front of that. It was such good fun."

There were even Scottish flags waving in the crowd and a "We like to Mouat, Mouat" chant broke out during the eighth end among a handful of fans. 

"We’ve got a good bunch of family and friends that come with us normally to worlds and Europeans and they can have a few chants for us. It’s nice a few people have caught on to it and brought it over here," Hardie said. "So much fun to play in front of that crowd. Great energy, great atmosphere all week and a lot of thanks to Newfoundland for hosting such a good event."

The seven-time Grand Slam champion Jacobs, who entered the final with an unblemished record, opened with the hammer but couldn’t convert and was limited to a single in the first.

Jacobs forced Mouat to draw for one point in the second to tie it up and played the waiting game blanking back-to-back ends. Mouat split up the house to prevent a third straight blank in the fifth as Jacobs drew for a single with his shooter hitting the brakes just in time at the back of the eight-foot circle.

After Jacobs attempted an in-off in six that didn’t work out, Mouat capitalized with a draw for the game’s first deuce to jump ahead for the first time in the game and take a 3-2 lead.

Mouat made any double attempt impossible in seven by hitting and rolling to the other side of the house as Jacobs hit and stuck around for the tying single.

"We wanted to try and flip it by seven and hope we had something in eight and that’s exactly what happened," Mouat said with a smile. "It’s almost like we planned it."

That gave Mouat the hammer coming home and an open hit to tack two points on the scoreboard sealed the championship.

"We had a very clear game plan about what we wanted to do today," Hardie said. "We knew what style of game it was going to be. We had to be pretty patient, execute our shots in key moments. 

"The two in six was huge. Two great draws from Bruce to be able to get the force in seven. We knew exactly what we needed to do coming home and leave Bruce a nice, easy shot to win."

Mouat won the HearingLife Tour Challenge in October and the Co-op Canadian Open last month, defeating the other Brad — Gushue that is — during both finals.

It was the first Grand Slam final for Jacobs since joining third Marc Kennedy, second Brett Gallant and lead Ben Hebert. Jacobs departed Winnipeg’s Team Reid Carruthers at the end of last season and linked up with the Calgary-based trio after they parted ways with skip Brendan Bottcher.

Team Jacobs banked $34,000 from the prize purse for going undefeated through round-robin play and finishing runner-up.

Despite eliminating the hometown hero Gushue in the quarterfinals, and getting the Mary Brown’s Centre crowd riled up, Jacobs had nothing but praise during his pre-game interview on Sportsnet, saying it was “one of the coolest experiences for us ever” and “we need more curling fans like you all across the world.”

Earlier Sunday, Canada’s Team Rachel Homan defeated Sweden’s Team Anna Hasselborg 6-5 to win the KIOTI National women’s title. It was a record-extending 17th Grand Slam of Curling women’s championship for Homan.

The Grand Slam of Curling resumes in the new year with the WFG Masters, Jan. 14-19, at the Sleeman Centre in Guelph, Ont.

"This is a year that we’re going to remember for a long time," Mouat said. "We’re going to have to try and bring it back in 2025 and see what we can do at the Masters. We’re going to just ride this wave as long as we can because we’re having a great time."