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SASKATOON — The world’s best curling teams look to close out the calendar on a high note at the WFG Masters, running Tuesday through to Sunday at Merlis Belsher Place.
All teams should be in mid-season form now because, well, the WFG Masters is the halfway point of the Grand Slam of Curling season with two events down and two more to follow in the new year.
Here’s a rundown of what you need to know for the WFG Masters in Eight Ends.
First End: What is the WFG Masters?
The WFG Masters is the third event of the Grand Slam of Curling season and is also the second major in the series as one of the original four events held during the inaugural 2001-02 campaign.
Glenn Howard holds the record for most Masters men’s titles won as a skip with six championships including four in a row from 2006-09.
Originally a men’s invitational, the event was expanded to include a women’s division starting in 2012. Rachel Homan, who won the first title, holds the record for most Masters women’s titles at three and is also a three-time runner-up.
Joël Retornaz and Kerri Einarson enter the WFG Masters as the reigning champions. Retornaz won his first-ever Grand Slam title, and the first for an Italian club, last year in Oakville, Ont., defeating Bruce Mouat in the men’s final while Einarson edged Homan in a thrilling extra end for the women’s trophy.
Second End: What’s the format?
The WFG Masters features 16 of the top men’s teams and 16 of the top women’s teams from around the globe. Teams were invited based on the WCF’s world team rankings as of Nov. 13 and are sorted based on those standings into four pools of four teams for round-robin play.
Teams don’t play those in their pool, rather they cross over to play four games against teams in an opposite pool, e.g. Pool A teams and Pool D teams meet while Pool B teams and Pool C teams face off.
The top eight teams in both men’s and women’s divisions advance to Saturday’s quarterfinals. The semifinals are also scheduled for Saturday with both finals set for Sunday.
A $400,000 combined prize purse, split equally between the men’s and women’s divisions, is on the line along with points for the WCF rankings.
Third End: Return of tiebreakers
The Grand Slam of Curling, in consultation with the players, has altered the format of the WFG Masters to once again include a single round for tiebreaker games, if necessary, to determine the final playoff spots should there be any ties in the standings.
The previous two events this season, the HearingLife Tour Challenge and KIOTI National, did not feature tiebreakers and relied strictly upon draw-to-the-button averages to settle any ties.
Shootout scores can still play a factor since there is only one tiebreaker round slated for Saturday morning, e.g. if three teams are tied for the eighth and final playoff spot, the team with the worst shootout will be eliminated.
Fourth End: Retornaz on a roll
Retornaz may have won his first Grand Slam title a year ago at the WFG Masters, but he now enters this year’s event as a three-time champion in the series.
Retornaz won back-to-back Grand Slam of Curling titles to start the season capturing the HearingLife Tour Challenge and KIOTI National while posting a combined 13-1 win-loss record.
His team, which is now ranked No. 1 in the world, can join an exclusive group by winning a third consecutive title in the series here at the WFG Masters. How exclusive? It’s only been done by five skips on the men’s side: Kevin Martin (who won five in a row during his streak), Glenn Howard, Brendan Bottcher, Brad Jacobs and Bruce Mouat.
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Fifth End: Men’s Division storylines
We first turn our attention to Retornaz’s opponent from the KIOTI National final, Niklas Edin, who was dealing with a nerve issue in his right wrist during that event. Edin hasn’t slowed down and has added to his hardware haul winning silver for Sweden at the European Championships and bronze at Karuizawa International.
Speaking of the Euros, Mouat captured a fourth gold medal in the event on home ice in Aberdeen, Scotland. Mouat leads a strong contingent of Scottish squads here with teams skipped by Ross Whyte, James Craik and Cameron Bryce (making his top-tier series debut) also in action.
After having an incredible 27-event playoff streak in the Grand Slam of Curling snapped at the KIOTI National, could Brad Gushue and his St. John’s, N.L., crew start something new at the WFG Masters? Gushue is coming off of a gold-medal performance in Karuizawa.
Local fans will certainly be cheering for Mike McEwen. The Winnipeg skip, who has won seven Grand Slam of Curling men’s titles, now plays out of Saskatoon with third Colton Flash, second Kevin Marsh and lead Dan Marsh.
It looks like Brad Jacobs will be in the driver’s seat for Reid Carruthers’ club, per the team’s social media account. That could help spark things after the Winnipeg-based team went 0-4 through the KIOTI National.
Sixth End: Women’s Division storylines
Eun-Ji Gim captured her first career Grand Slam title at the KIOTI National, going 7-0 through the tournament, and it’ll be interesting to see how her club from South Korea follows that up.
Homan has lost only three games total this season: twice during round-robin play at the HearingLife Tour Challenge plus the final of the KIOTI National. Outside of the Slams, the Ottawa-based club is undefeated with a trio of title wins. That’s all to say expect Homan to do well at WFG Masters once again.
Switzerland’s Silvana Tirinzoni is ranked No. 1 in the world for a reason and captured her first career European Championships gold medal last month.
Stefania Constantini took home silver at the Euros and with back-to-back playoff appearances in the Grand Slam of Curling, could her Italian club be ready to take the next step?
Seventh End: Must-see matches
Yes, when the world’s best collide every match has the potential to be can’t-miss entertainment, but these are five that have an extra layer of intrigue.
• Homan vs. Hasselborg (Draw 10): These two skips have been squaring off since the 2010 World Junior Championships and met in the Masters women’s final in 2018. Homan won both of their contests during the KIOTI National, in pool play and again during the semifinals, so expect a charged-up Hasselborg squad looking for revenge.
• Gim vs. Einarson (Draw 12): The top-ranked teams from their respective pools meet here. Although Einarson holds a 7-3 head-to-head record in their 10 career meetings, Gim has a 2-0 advantage this season.
• Bottcher vs. Gushue (Draw 14): Curling is a game of inches, but let’s give it a metric conversion. The last time these two faced at the KIOTI National, it was a game of centimetres as it came down to a close measurement to determine the winner (in that case, Bottcher). Expect another down-to-the-wire finish.
• Mouat vs. Dunstone (Draw 16): Round-robin play wraps up with another game between two skips who have been facing off since juniors. With playoff implications likely on the line, expect to see both sides go all-out with some highlight-reel shooting.
• Retornaz vs. Edin (Draw 16): Last month’s KIOTI National men’s final is this month’s round-robin finale. Again, with the playoff picture taking shape, it should be a dandy.
Eighth End: How to watch
Can’t make it to Saskatoon? Broadcast coverage begins Thursday on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ (Canada). Visit sportsnet.ca/schedule for an up-to-date schedule.
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