Gushue crushes Norwegians in final

World champ eyes Champions Cup

Another day, another Grand Slam for Brad Gushue.

The defending world champion hit another one out of the park Sunday, earning his eighth career title on the Grand Slam of Curling tour. He needed just six ends to beat Norway’s Steffen Walstad 9-1 in the final of the Tour Challenge in Regina.

The native of St. John’s, N.L., became the first skip to win six different events on the tour. Sunday’s triumph was good for a $20,000 payday and a berth in the seasonending Champions Cup — the only Grand Slam to elude him.

“We’ve had a good run over the last couple years,” said Gushue, whose foursome also includes Mark Nichols, Brett Gallant and Geoff Walker. “We have a good team but these are difficult to win. We don’t take winning these lightly.”

Gushue cruised through roundrobin play with a 4-0 record but needed an extra-end steal to beat Saskatoon’s Steve Laycock 7-5 in the quarter-finals. That was followed by a 5-2 semifinal win over defending Olympic champion Brad Jacobs of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.

Gushue, the 2006 Olympic champ, has his sights set on the 2018 Winter Games in South Korea. His team has already qualified for Roar of the Rings Canadian Olympic trials (Dec. 2-10 in Ottawa).

Meanwhile, defending Tour Challenge champion Val Sweeting of Edmonton stole one in the eighth to beat Sweden’s Anna Hasselbourg in Sunday’s tier 1 women’s final. Sweeting ran the table with a 7-0 record.

Winnipeg’s Kerri Einarson won the tier 2 final, beating Calgary’s Chelsea Carey 7-4. Jason Gunnlaugson defeated fellow Winnipegger William Lyburn 8-7 in the tier 2 men’s final.

We’ve had a good run over the last couple years. We have a good team but these are difficult to win.