The Masters of Curling / Capital One Grand Slam of Curling Story Ideas

 

Welcome to the Capital One Grand Slam of Curling Connection, your source for story ideas about Canada’s top curlers and the Masters of Curling.  As part of the lead-up to the Masters of Curling, Insight Sports will provide members of the media with a list of story ideas on a weekly basis.

 

The Masters of Curling is the third leg of the men’s 2007-08 Capital One Grand Slam of Curling series.  The event is scheduled to take place from January 23-27 at the Credit Union Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.  Complete information regarding the event can be found at http://www.worldcurlingtour.com/masters/.

 

Feedback and questions about the story bank ideas, the Masters of Curling, or the Capital One Grand Slam of Curling are welcome by contacting Eric Michalko, Communications Manager at (416) 593-0915, ext. 253 or emichalko@insightsports.com.

 

 

1) Kevin Martin Aims To Unify Capital One Grand Slam of Curling Titles in Saskatoon

 

Kevin Martin’s bid for a sixth consecutive Capital One Grand Slam of Curling title will carry some extra incentive as the Edmonton-based skip will have an opportunity to accomplish the unprecedented feat of holding all four major titles simultaneously should his team capture the Masters of Curling championship in Saskatoon.

 

Despite winning five consecutive Capital One Grand Slam of Curling titles, Martin is only the reigning champion in three of the four events as the Capital One Grand Slam of Curling schedule is not contested in the same order each year.

 

During the 2006-07 curling season, Martin’s squad fell in the semi-finals of the season’s first Capital One Grand Slam of Curling event, the Masters of Curling, before winning the BDO Classic Canadian Open, The National and the TYLENOL® Players’ Championship in succession.

 

This season, the Masters of Curling is the third leg of the men’s Capital One Grand Slam of Curling series.  During the first two legs, Martin successfully defended his titles at both the BDO Classic Canadian Open and The National.

 

A victory by Martin at the Masters of Curling in Saskatoon would be one of the most impressive accomplishments in both curling and Canadian sports history as his achievement would involve six consecutive Capital One Grand Slam of Curling victories against the best fields in the game.

 

 

2)  Team Simmons Front and Centre at Masters of Curling

 

With so many well-known skips competing in the Capital One Grand Slam of Curling series – Kevin Martin, Glenn Howard, Randy Ferbey, Brad Gushue et al. – Pat Simmons is sometimes the forgotten man among fans and media when the discussion turns to Canada’s top curlers.

 

As one of two Saskatchewan-based rinks competing at the Masters of Curling, Simmons’ team will have the rare distinction of being front and centre during the five-day tournament at the Credit Union Centre in Saskatoon.

 

Through the first half of the 2007-08 season, Simmons’ team has enjoyed great success competing on the World Curling Tour.

 

After opening the season with a victory at the Boston Pizza September Shoot-Out, Simmons led his squad to a semi-final appearance at the PricewaterhouseCoopers Westcoast Curling Classic before reaching the finals of the Meyers Norris Penny Charity Classic.

 

Over the past three seasons, Simmons’ squad has played some of their best curling at the Capital One Grand Slam of Curling events.  After reaching the finals of The National during the 2005-06 season, Simmons’ team has reached the semi-finals at the TYLENOL® Players’ Championship during each of the past two years.

 

Heading into the Masters of Curling, Simmons currently sits seventh overall in the Capital One Order of Merit rankings, just 6.872 points behind Winnipeg’s Kerry Burtnyk for sixth.

 

Simmons’ (Davidson, Sask.) team consists of third Jeff Sharp (Saskatoon, Sask.), second Gerry Adam (Yorkton, Sask.) and lead Steve Laycock (Saltcoats, Sask.).

 

----------------------------------

 

 

 

    NEWS RELEASE

 

Capital One Grand Slam of Curling Announces Draw for the Masters of Curling

SASKATOON, January 8, 2008 – The Capital One Grand Slam of Curling and Insight Sports announced today the section groupings and draw schedule for the Masters of Curling.  The third leg of the men’s Capital One Grand Slam of Curling series, the Masters of Curling will take place at the Credit Union Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan from January 23 to 27, 2008.

 

The Masters of Curling will feature three sections of six teams.  Teams are systematically allocated into sections based on their seeding in the Capital One Order of Merit Rankings as of December 24, 2007.  Note: Number in bracket denotes Capital One Order of Merit seeding.

 

Section A                                                       Section B                                                       Section C

(1) Kevin Martin (Edmonton, Alta.)                  (2) Glenn Howard (Coldwater, Ont.)               (3) Kevin Koe (Edmonton, Alta.)               

(6) Kerry Burtnyk (Winnipeg, Man.)                (5) Jeff Stoughton (Winnipeg, Man.)               (4) Randy Ferbey (Edmonton, Alta.)

(7) Pat Simmons (Davidson, Sask.)              (8) Brad Gushue (St. John’s, Nfld.)                (9) Wayne Middaugh (Midland, Ont.)

(12) Thomas Ulsrud (Oslo, Norway)              (11) Peter Corner (Brampton, Ont.)               (10) Joel Jordison (Moose Jaw, Sask.)    

(13) Shawn Adams (Halifax, N.S.)                  (14) Mark Johnson (Edmonton, Alta.)             (15) Jamie King (Edmonton, Alta.)       

(18) Jason Larway (Seattle, Wash., U.S.A.)  (17) Greg McAulay (Richmond, B.C.)             (16) Reid Carruthers (Winnipeg, Man.)

 

Following the conclusion of round robin play, the top eight teams, regardless of their section grouping, will qualify for the tournament’s quarterfinals.

 

Individual, weekend and five-day ticket packages for the Masters of Curling are currently on sale.  Tickets can be purchased online by visiting www.ticketmaster.ca or www.creditunioncentre.com.  Tickets are also available through the Credit Union Centre box office by phoning 1 (800) 970-SEAT (7328) or (306) 938-7800.

 

The draw for the Masters of Curling is as follows.  **All times local Central standard time.  Schedule subject to change. 

 

Wednesday, January 23

5:30 p.m.         Sheet A                       Sheet B                       Sheet C                       Sheet D                       Sheet E           

Draw 1            Howard vs. McAulay   Gushue vs. Corner     Jordison vs. Middaugh     Ulsrud vs. Larway       Stoughton vs. Johnson

 

8:30 p.m.         Sheet A                       Sheet B                       Sheet C                       Sheet D                       Sheet E           

Draw 2            Martin vs. Larway        Adams vs. Burtnyk      Ulsrud vs. Simmons   Koe vs. Carruthers     King vs. Ferbery

 

 

Thursday, January 24

9:30 a.m.         Sheet A                       Sheet B                       Sheet C                       Sheet D                       Sheet E           

Draw 3            Koe vs. Jordison         Ferbey vs. Carruthers     Adams vs. Martin        King vs. Middaugh       Burtnyk vs. Simmons

 

1:00 p.m.         Sheet A                       Sheet B                       Sheet C                       Sheet D                       Sheet E                       

Draw 4            Adams vs. Ulsrud       Larway vs. Simmons  Stoughton vs. McAulay   Gushue vs. Johnson   Howard vs. Corner

 

5:30 p.m.         Sheet A                       Sheet B                       Sheet C                       Sheet D                       Sheet E           

Draw 5            Corner vs. Stoughton      Johnson vs. McAulay  Gushue vs. Howard    Ferbey vs. Jordison    Koe vs. Middaugh

 

8:30 p.m.         Sheet A                       Sheet B                       Sheet C                       Sheet D                       Sheet E

Draw 6            Middaugh vs. Carruthers King vs. Jordison        Burtnyk vs. Ulsrud       Martin vs. Simmons    Adams vs. Larway

 

 

Friday, January 25

10:00 a.m.       Sheet A                       Sheet B                       Sheet C                       Sheet D                       Sheet E           

Draw 7            King vs. Carruthers     Burtnyk vs. Larway     Gushue vs. Stoughton    Corner vs. McAulay     Howard vs. Johnson         

 

2:00 p.m.         Sheet A                       Sheet B                       Sheet C                       Sheet D                       Sheet E           

Draw 8            Martin vs. Ulsrud         Adams vs. Simmons  Koe vs. King                Jordison vs. Carruthers   Ferbey vs. Middaugh        

 

6:00 p.m.         Sheet A                       Sheet B                       Sheet C                       Sheet D                       Sheet E           

Draw 9            Corner vs. Johnson    Koe vs. Ferbey            Martin vs. Burtnyk       Howard vs. Stoughton     Gushue vs. McAulay

 

9:00 p.m.         Tie-breaker, if necessary

 

 

Saturday, January 26

9:30 a.m.         Quarterfinals

 

2:00 p.m.         Semi-finals

 

 

Sunday, January 27

2:00 p.m.         Final                                       

 

About Insight Sports Ltd.

Insight Sports Ltd. is a leading sports media and entertainment company which creates and distributes sports and entertainment content across multiple platforms, including broadcast television, DVD, on-line, mobile, in-arena and video on-demand.

 

Insight Sports operates three specialty television networks: GOLTV Canada (www.goltv.ca), a 24-hour soccer network; WFN: World Fishing Network (www.wfn.tv), North America's only network devoted entirely to fishing; and GameTV (www.igametv.com), the only Canadian television network that gives viewers a chance to win great prizes every day, simply by tuning in. The company owns and operates the Capital One Grand Slam of Curling, the most prestigious events on the World Curling Tour and Ford Major League Gaming Canada (www.mlgcanada.com), an affiliate of Major League Gaming and the largest organized league and international sanctioning body for professional video gaming.  Insight Sports also manages Wayne Gretzky’s official website, www.gretzky.com and holds a significant interest in the NHL Network (www.nhlnetwork.ca), a 24-hour hockey channel.

 

Aquila Productions Inc., a leader in sports television production, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Insight Sports. Based in Toronto, the principal shareholders of Insight Sports include Larry Tanenbaum (Kilmer Enterprises Inc., a subsidiary of Kilmer Van Nostrand Co. Limited) and MWI & Partners. For more information see www.insightsports.com.

 

About Capital One

Located in Toronto, Ontario, Capital One has offered Canadian consumers a range of competitive MasterCard^® credit cards since 1996, when the company first introduced the Platinum MasterCard^® in Canada.  Capital One Canada is a division of Capital One Bank, a subsidiary of Capital One Financial Corporation of McLean, Virginia (NYSE: COF).

-30-

For additional information, please contact:

Eric Michalko
Communications Manager
Insight Sports Ltd.
Phone: 416.593.0915, ext. 253
Cell: 647.669.0900
Email: emichalko@insightsports.com

 

-----------------------------------------------