Saskatoon StarPhoenix

This curling twist takes some adjustment

- DANIEL NUGENT-BOWMAN dnugent-bowman@thestarpho­enix.com

Rocks were smacking against each other and brooms were sliding across the ice.

That’s about where the similariti­es ended between traditiona­l curling and the action at the Saskatchew­an provincial mixed doubles championsh­ip.

“There are a lot more rocks and not the same precision,” said Shawn Joyce, a longtime skip who has competed at past Tankards.

Sherry Just asked Joyce to compete the weekend. He just coached Just at the Northern playdowns this year.

They opened the bonspiel — which runs through Sunday at the CN Curling Club — with a 6-5 win over Bob Sonder and his girlfriend Michelle Lang.

Because it was the first tournament for both teams, there were plenty of new rules to adjust to.

There are eight ends rather than 10, six rocks as opposed to eight and a three-rock rule, which includes those in the house.

“Right now you’ve got a lot of people playing it for the first time,” Joyce said. “We’re reacting to what we see out there.”

Another difference is that only one person can sweep.

Usually that means the person throwing the stone must run, catch and start brushing it.

A teammate will take over once it gets closer to the house.

“You’re used to throwing everything to your sweepers to get that last few feet of finish to get by a guard,” said Sonder, from Regina Callie. “You need a lot better feel for draw weight or whatever weight you’re trying to throw. You don’t have help.”

But the biggest adjustment comes at the start of each end.

The team that doesn’t score in the previous end decides who gets the hammer.

The one with the hammer puts a stone just behind the pin of the bottom, while the team throwing first gets to place a guard.

Those rocks count as the first of the six.

One team member then throws the first and fifth stones, while the other handles the second, third and fourth ones. That gets decided at the start of each end.

“You play those ends every once and a while where the other team throws one up and your lead throws around it and it comes to the back of the button, but you call that a sin,” Joyce said.

“It’s the worst place to have that stone. If they make that freeze you’re in all kinds of trouble.”

CN Club general manager Steve Turner believes players should get used to the new game.

This is only the third annual provincial mixed doubles championsh­ip and the first one held in Saskatoon.

The champion moves on to the national tournament next month in Ottawa.

The worlds will be held in Sochi, Russia, in April.

This variation on the sport is very popular in Europe and there has been some talk about it being included in the Olympics.

Turner adds that it’s a great way to extend the curling season for many players, while the smaller team size and quick 75-to-90-minute game times make it more inclusive.

However, there’s still a ways to go.

“As a nation, we’re playing catch up,” Turner said. “We’re trying to build the sport.”

Joyce agrees. The Saskatchew­an championsh­ip was open to anyone that signed up before Jan. 26. There are 11 teams competing for the provincial crown.

“The strategy’s going to have to evolve,” Joyce said. “It’s really still in its infancy.

“Right now it’s a race to the middle.”

 ?? GORD WALDNER/The StarPhoeni­x ?? Sherry Just is on a Mixed Doubles Curling team with Shawn Joyce playing
this weekend at the CN Club.
GORD WALDNER/The StarPhoeni­x Sherry Just is on a Mixed Doubles Curling team with Shawn Joyce playing this weekend at the CN Club.
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