The 2024 Princess Auto Players' Championship was held from April 9 to 14 at the Mattamy Athletic Centre in Toronto, Ontario.[1] It is the fifth and final Grand Slam event of the 2023–24 curling season.
Switzerland's Silvana Tirinzoni rink defeated Sweden's Isabella Wranå rink the in the women's final, 6–5. It was a re-match of the 2023 Players' Championship final, in which Team Wranå was victorious. Team Tirinzoni opened up the scoring in the second end when last rock thrower Alina Pätz made a hit and stick for two. Wranå made a double in the third end to get a single, but nearly gave up a steal. Wranå missed a double in the fourth, and Pätz responded with a draw for two to take a 4–1 lead into the break. In the fifth, Wranå's last rock crashed on a guard, but rolled into the house, resulting in a score of two after a measurement. Wranå scored a steal of one in the sixth after Pätz missed a hit and roll, tying the game at four. In the seventh, Pätz made a bump of two Wranå stones that were close together, scoring two points in the process to take a 6–4 lead into the final frame. In the eighth, Wranå missed her last shot, scoring just a single point to lose the game. It was third straight Slam final for the Swiss team, after losing the previous two. It was the fourth career Slam title for Tirinzoni.[2]
In the men's final, Newfoundland and Labrador's Brad Gushue won his 15th Grand Slam title after defeating the World #1 ranked Joël Retornaz team from Italy, 7–6. Team Gushue started the game off by getting forced to a single in the first after Gushue made a hit against two Retornaz rocks which sat across the rings. Retornaz scored a deuce in the second after making a hit on his last rock, which was followed by Gushue scoring a deuce of his own in the third after making a draw for two to take a 3–2 lead. Retornaz scored another deuce in the fourth after removing a Gushue stone off the button. Gushue scored another two in the next end with another draw, to take a 5–4 lead after five. In the sixth, Retornaz attempted to make a run double on his last, but missed, giving up a steal of one, to go down 6–4. In the seventh, with the team already sitting two, Retornaz attempted a raise on a guard to get a third point, but missed. The team still scored the two points, tying the game going into the last end. In the final end, Gushue missed a runback on his first shot, allowing Retornaz to draw to sit three to make things more difficult for Gushue. Gushue did not miss his last shot however, a draw to the back four which "pinballed" off of a Retornaz stone to come to a rest, winning the game.[3]
Qualification
The top 12 ranked men's and women's teams on World Curling's Year-to-Date rankings as of March 11, 2024 qualified for the event. In the event that a team declines their invitation, the next-ranked team on the world team ranking is invited until the field is complete.[4]
Men
Top Year-to-Date men's teams:[5]
- Joël Retornaz
- Brendan Bottcher
- Bruce Mouat
- Ross Whyte
- Yannick Schwaller
- Brad Gushue
- Niklas Edin
- Matt Dunstone
- Mike McEwen
- Kevin Koe
- Brad Jacobs
- James Craik
Women
Top Year-to-Date women's teams:[6]
- Rachel Homan
- Silvana Tirinzoni
- Gim Eun-ji
- Jennifer Jones
- Anna Hasselborg
- Kim Eun-jung
- Kerri Einarson
- Isabella Wranå
- Stefania Constantini
- Kaitlyn Lawes
- Xenia Schwaller
- Satsuki Fujisawa
Men
Teams
The teams are listed as follows:[7][8]
| Skip
|
Third
|
Second
|
Lead
|
Locale
|
| Brendan Bottcher |
Marc Kennedy |
Brett Gallant |
Ben Hebert |
Calgary, Alberta
|
| James Craik |
Mark Watt |
Angus Bryce |
Blair Haswell |
Forfar, Scotland
|
| Matt Dunstone |
B. J. Neufeld |
Colton Lott |
Ryan Harnden |
Winnipeg, Manitoba
|
| Niklas Edin |
Oskar Eriksson |
Rasmus Wranå |
Christoffer Sundgren |
Karlstad, Sweden
|
| Brad Gushue |
Mark Nichols |
E. J. Harnden |
Geoff Walker |
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
|
| Brad Jacobs |
Reid Carruthers |
Scott Howard[a] |
Connor Njegovan |
Winnipeg, Manitoba
|
| Kevin Koe |
Tyler Tardi |
Jacques Gauthier |
Karrick Martin |
Calgary, Alberta
|
| Mike McEwen |
Colton Flasch |
Kevin Marsh |
Dan Marsh |
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
|
| Bruce Mouat |
Grant Hardie |
Bobby Lammie |
Hammy McMillan Jr. |
Stirling, Scotland
|
| Joël Retornaz |
Amos Mosaner |
Sebastiano Arman |
Mattia Giovanella |
Trentino, Italy
|
| Benoît Schwarz-van Berkel (Fourth) |
Yannick Schwaller (Skip) |
Sven Michel |
Pablo Lachat |
Geneva, Switzerland
|
| Ross Whyte |
Robin Brydone |
Duncan McFadzean |
Craig Waddell[b] |
Stirling, Scotland
|
Round robin standings
Final Round Robin Standings
Round robin results
All draw times are listed in Eastern Time (UTC−04:00).[11]
Draw 1
Tuesday, April 9, 11:30 am
Draw 2
Tuesday, April 9, 3:00 pm
Draw 3
Tuesday, April 9, 6:30 pm
Draw 4
Wednesday, April 10, 8:00 am
Draw 5
Wednesday, April 10, 11:30 am
Draw 6
Wednesday, April 10, 3:30 pm
Draw 7
Wednesday, April 10, 7:30 pm
Draw 8
Thursday, April 11, 8:30 am
Draw 9
Thursday, April 11, 11:30 am
Draw 10
Thursday, April 11, 3:30 pm
Draw 11
Thursday, April 11, 7:30 pm
Draw 12
Friday, April 12, 7:30 am
Draw 13
Friday, April 12, 11:00 am
Draw 14
Friday, April 12, 3:00 pm
Draw 15
Friday, April 12, 7:00 pm
Playoffs
Quarterfinals
Saturday, April 13, 3:30 pm
Semifinals
Saturday, April 13, 7:30 pm
Final
Sunday, April 14, 2:30 pm
Women
Teams
The teams are listed as follows:[7][12]
| Skip
|
Third
|
Second
|
Lead
|
Alternate
|
Locale
|
| Stefania Constantini |
Elena Mathis |
Angela Romei |
Giulia Zardini Lacedelli |
Marta Lo Deserto |
Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy
|
| Kerri Einarson |
Val Sweeting |
Shannon Birchard |
Krysten Karwacki[c] |
|
Gimli, Manitoba
|
| Satsuki Fujisawa |
Chinami Yoshida |
Yumi Suzuki |
Yurika Yoshida |
Kotomi Ishizaki |
Kitami, Japan
|
| Gim Eun-ji |
Kim Min-ji |
Kim Su-ji |
Seol Ye-eun |
Seol Ye-ji |
Uijeongbu, South Korea
|
| Anna Hasselborg |
Sara McManus |
Agnes Knochenhauer |
Sofia Mabergs |
|
Sundbyberg, Sweden
|
| Rachel Homan |
Tracy Fleury |
Emma Miskew |
Sarah Wilkes |
|
Ottawa, Ontario
|
| Jennifer Jones |
Karlee Burgess |
Emily Zacharias |
Lauren Lenentine |
|
Winnipeg, Manitoba
|
| Kim Eun-jung |
Kim Kyeong-ae |
Kim Cho-hi |
Kim Seon-yeong |
Kim Yeong-mi |
Gangneung, South Korea
|
| Kaitlyn Lawes |
Selena Njegovan |
Jocelyn Peterman |
Kristin MacCuish |
|
Winnipeg, Manitoba
|
| Xenia Schwaller |
Selina Gafner |
Fabienne Rieder |
Selina Rychiger |
Marion Wüest |
Zurich, Switzerland
|
| Alina Pätz (Fourth) |
Silvana Tirinzoni (Skip) |
Selina Witschonke |
Carole Howald |
|
Aarau, Switzerland
|
| Isabella Wranå |
Almida de Val |
Maria Larsson |
Linda Stenlund |
|
Sundbyberg, Sweden
|
Round robin standings
Final Round Robin Standings
Round robin results
All draw times are listed in Eastern Time (UTC−04:00).[11]
Draw 1
Tuesday, April 9, 11:30 am
Draw 2
Tuesday, April 9, 3:00 pm
Draw 3
Tuesday, April 9, 6:30 pm
Draw 4
Wednesday, April 10, 8:00 am
Draw 5
Wednesday, April 10, 11:30 am
Draw 6
Wednesday, April 10, 3:30 pm
Draw 7
Wednesday, April 10, 7:30 pm
Draw 8
Thursday, April 11, 8:30 am
Draw 9
Thursday, April 11, 11:30 am
Draw 10
Thursday, April 11, 3:30 pm
Draw 11
Thursday, April 11, 7:30 pm
Draw 12
Friday, April 12, 7:30 am
Draw 13
Friday, April 12, 11:00 am
Draw 14
Friday, April 12, 3:00 pm
Draw 15
Friday, April 12, 7:00 pm
Playoffs
Quarterfinals
Saturday, April 13, 11:30 am
Semifinals
Saturday, April 13, 7:30 pm
Final
Sunday, April 14, 10:00 am
Notes
References
- ^ "Princess Auto Players' Championship". Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ "Tirinzoni tops Wrana to take Princess Auto Players' Championship women's title". Sportsnet. April 14, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
- ^ "Gushue wins 15th GSOC title at Princess Auto Players' Championship in thrilling fashion". Sportsnet. April 14, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
- ^ "Format and Qualification". Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ "World Curling Federation: Men's Year-to-Date". CurlingZone. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ "World Curling Federation: Women's Year-to-Date". CurlingZone. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ a b "Teams". Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ "Men's Teams". CurlingZone. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ "We're excited to have Scott Howard with us this week at the Grand Slam of Curling Players' Championship! He will be filling in for Derek who will be at home for the birth of his second child. Welcome Scott!". Facebook. Team Carruthers. April 8, 2024. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
- ^ "It's the last event of the season! This week we are competing in the Grand Slam of Curling Players Championship. We are joined this week by Craig Waddell who is filling in for Euan who has an injury he is recovering from. We wish Euan a speedy recovery! Looking forward to getting this one started tomorrow morning". Facebook. Team Whyte. April 8, 2024. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
- ^ a b "Match schedule set for Princess Auto Players' Championship in Toronto". Grand Slam of Curling. March 13, 2024. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ "Women's Teams". CurlingZone. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
External links