Players' Championship

Last updated
Players' Championship
Players' Championship.jpeg
Established1993
2024 host city Toronto, Ontario
2024 arena Mattamy Athletic Centre
Purse CAD $175,000
Current champions (2023)
Men Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Koe
Women Flag of Sweden.svg Isabella Wranå
Current edition

The Players' Championship is one of the final events on the World Curling Tour (WCT) and is a part of the Grand Slam of Curling.

Contents

From 2016 to 2019, it was the penultimate slam of the curling season, and the last of the four "majors". [1] The event was one of the original Grand Slam events when they were instituted in the 2001–02 season for men and for the 2006–07 season for women.

History

The event began as the "VO Cup" before the Grand Slam era in 1993, as part of the very first World Curling Tour season. [2] The event was known as the VO Cup for two seasons before title sponsor Seagram's Distillery pulled out. [3] With no sponsor, the 1995 event was saved at the last minute, and continued the next season thanks to a TV deal with TSN. [4]

A women's event was introduced in 2006. [5]

From 2007 to 2009, it was a qualifying tournament for the Canadian Olympic Curling Trials, and had barred foreign teams from entering (unlike the other Slams). Scotland's Eve Muirhead became the first non-Canadian skip to win the event in 2013, while Sweden's Niklas Edin became the first non Canadian skip to win the men's event in 2017.

To date, Edmonton's Kevin Martin has won the most Players' Championships with 8. On the women's side, Winnipeg's Jennifer Jones (and her long-time second, Jill Officer) have won the most championships with 6.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, both the 2020 Players' Championship and the 2020 Champions Cup were cancelled. [6]

Qualification

The top 12 teams on the men's and women's WCT year-to-date rankings respectively qualify for the event. Teams that decline their invitations are replaced by the next highest ranked team. [7]

Format

In 2023 and from 2014 to 2021, the event featured 12 teams split into two pools of six which compete in a round robin, with the top six teams advancing to a single game elimination playoff. In 2021, the number of teams earning playoff berths was reduced from eight. [8] [9] The 2022 event was a triple knockout.

Past champions

Men

YearWinning teamRunner-up teamLocationPurse
1993 Flag of Ontario.svg Russ Howard, Glenn Howard, Wayne Middaugh, Peter Corner Flag of Ontario.svg Paul Savage, Graeme McCarrel, Ian Tetley, Todd Tsukamoto [10] Calgary, Alberta $120,000 [11]
1994 Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, Kevin Park, James Pahl, Don Bartlett Flag of Ontario.svg Ed Werenich, John Kawaja, Pat Perroud, Neil Harrison Calgary, Alberta $100,000 [12]
1995 (Apr.) Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Murray McEachern, Rick Schneider, Daryl Nixon, Larry Schneider Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Brad Heidt, Mark Dacey, Wayne Charteris, Dan Ormsby Selkirk, Manitoba $75,000 [3]
1995 (Dec.) Flag of Ontario.svg Wayne Middaugh, Graeme McCarrel, Ian Tetley, Scott Bailey Flag of Manitoba.svg Dale Duguid, Dan Carey, Russ Hayes, Doug Armstrong Jasper, Alberta $106,000 [4]
1997 Flag of Ontario.svg Russ Howard, Glenn Howard, Scott Patterson, Phil Loevenmark Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Randy Woytowich, Rick Schneider, Brian McCusker, John Grundy [13] Winnipeg, Manitoba $60,000 [14]
1998 Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, Don Walchuk, Rudy Ramcharan, Marcel Rocque Flag of Manitoba.svg Vic Peters, Dave Smith, Chris Neufeld, Don Harvey [15] Fort McMurray, Alberta $60,000 [16]
1999 Flag of Ontario.svg Wayne Middaugh, Graeme McCarrel, Ian Tetley, Scott Bailey Flag of Ontario.svg Russ Howard, Glenn Howard, Peter Corner, Neil Harrison Winnipeg, Manitoba $150,000 [17]
2000 Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, Don Walchuk, Carter Rycroft, Don Bartlett Flag of Ontario.svg Wayne Middaugh, Graeme McCarrel, Ian Tetley, Scott Bailey Winnipeg, Manitoba $150,000 [18]
2001 Flag of Ontario.svg Wayne Middaugh, Graeme McCarrel, Ian Tetley, Scott Bailey Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, Don Walchuk, Carter Rycroft, Don Bartlett Calgary, Alberta $150,000 [19]
2002 Flag of Ontario.svg Wayne Middaugh, Graeme McCarrel, Ian Tetley, Scott Bailey Flag of Manitoba.svg Vic Peters, Mark Olson, Chris Neufeld, Steve Gould Strathroy, Ontario $150,000
2003 Flag of Manitoba.svg Jeff Stoughton, Jon Mead, Gary Van Den Berghe, Jim Spencer Flag of Ontario.svg John Morris, Joe Frans, Brent Laing, Craig Savill Leduc, Alberta $150,000
2004 Flag of Alberta.svg John Morris, Kevin Koe, Marc Kennedy, Paul Moffatt Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, Don Walchuk, Carter Rycroft, Don Bartlett St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador $150,000
2005 Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, Don Walchuk, Carter Rycroft, Don Bartlett Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador.svg Brad Gushue, Mark Nichols, Mike Adam, Jamie Korab St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador $150,000
2006 Flag of Alberta.svg Randy Ferbey, David Nedohin, Scott Pfeifer, Marcel Rocque Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, Don Walchuk, Carter Rycroft, Adam Enright Calgary, Alberta $150,000 [20]
2007 Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, John Morris, Marc Kennedy, Ben Hebert Flag of Alberta.svg Blake MacDonald, Kevin Park, Carter Rycroft, Nolan Thiessen Calgary, Alberta $100,000
2008 Flag of Ontario.svg Glenn Howard, Richard Hart, Brent Laing, Craig Savill Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, John Morris, Marc Kennedy, Ben Hebert St. John's, Newfoundland $100,000
2009 Flag of Alberta.svg Randy Ferbey, David Nedohin, Scott Pfeifer, Marcel Rocque Flag of Ontario.svg Glenn Howard, Richard Hart, Brent Laing, Craig Savill Grande Prairie, Alberta $100,000
2010 Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, John Morris, Marc Kennedy, Ben Hebert Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador.svg Brad Gushue, Mark Nichols, Ryan Fry, Jamie Korab Dawson Creek, British Columbia $100,000
2011 Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, John Morris, Marc Kennedy, Ben Hebert Flag of Sweden.svg Niklas Edin, Sebastian Kraupp, Fredrik Lindberg, Viktor Kjäll Grande Prairie, Alberta $100,000
2012 Flag of Ontario.svg John Epping, Scott Bailey, Scott Howard, David Mathers Flag of Ontario.svg Glenn Howard, Wayne Middaugh, Brent Laing, Craig Savill Summerside, Prince Edward Island $100,000
2013 Flag of Ontario.svg Glenn Howard, Wayne Middaugh, Brent Laing, Craig Savill Flag of Manitoba.svg Mike McEwen, B. J. Neufeld, Matt Wozniak, Denni Neufeld Toronto, Ontario $100,000
2014 Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Martin, Marc Kennedy, David Nedohin, Ben Hebert Flag of Ontario.svg Brad Jacobs, Ryan Fry, E. J. Harnden, Ryan Harnden Summerside, Prince Edward Island $100,000
2015 Flag of Ontario.svg Brad Jacobs, Ryan Fry, E. J. Harnden, Ryan Harnden Flag of Manitoba.svg Mike McEwen, B. J. Neufeld, Matt Wozniak, Denni Neufeld Toronto, Ontario $100,000
2016 Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador.svg Brad Gushue, Mark Nichols, Brett Gallant, Geoff Walker Flag of Ontario.svg Brad Jacobs, Ryan Fry, E. J. Harnden, Ryan Harnden Toronto, Ontario $100,000
2017 Flag of Sweden.svg Niklas Edin, Oskar Eriksson, Rasmus Wranå, Christoffer Sundgren Flag of Manitoba.svg Mike McEwen, B. J. Neufeld, Matt Wozniak, Denni Neufeld Toronto, Ontario $150,000
2018 Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Koe, Marc Kennedy, Brent Laing, Ben Hebert Flag of Sweden.svg Niklas Edin, Oskar Eriksson, Rasmus Wranå, Christoffer Sundgren Toronto, Ontario $150,000
2019 Flag of Alberta.svg Brendan Bottcher, Darren Moulding, Brad Thiessen, Karrick Martin Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Koe, B. J. Neufeld, Colton Flasch, Ben Hebert Toronto, Ontario $150,000
2020 Cancelled [6]
2021 Flag of Scotland.svg Bruce Mouat, Grant Hardie, Bobby Lammie, Hammy McMillan Jr. Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador.svg Brad Gushue, Mark Nichols, Brett Gallant, Geoff Walker Calgary, Alberta [21] $175,000
2022 Flag of Scotland.svg Bruce Mouat, Grant Hardie, Bobby Lammie, Hammy McMillan Jr. Flag of Sweden.svg Niklas Edin, Oskar Eriksson, Rasmus Wranå (3 player team) Toronto, Ontario $175,000
2023 Flag of Alberta.svg Kevin Koe, Tyler Tardi, Brad Thiessen, Karrick Martin Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Benoît Schwarz (Fourth), Yannick Schwaller (Skip), Sven Michel, Pablo Lachat Toronto, Ontario $175,000
2024 Toronto, Ontario $175,000

Women

YearWinning teamRunner-up teamLocationPurse
2006 Flag of Manitoba.svg Jennifer Jones, Cathy Overton-Clapham, Jill Officer, Georgina Wheatcroft Flag of Alberta.svg Cheryl Bernard, Susan O'Connor, Carolyn Darbyshire, Cori Bartel Calgary, Alberta $100,000 [20]
2007 Flag of Manitoba.svg Jennifer Jones, Cathy Overton-Clapham, Jill Officer, Dawn Askin Flag of British Columbia.svg Kelly Scott, Jeanna Schraeder, Sasha Carter, Renee Simons Calgary, Alberta $100,000
2008 Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Amber Holland, Kim Schneider, Tammy Schneider, Heather Seeley Flag of Ontario.svg Krista McCarville, Tara George, Kari MacLean-Kraft, Lorraine Lang St. John's, Newfoundland $100,000
2009 Flag of Manitoba.svg Jennifer Jones, Cathy Overton-Clapham, Jill Officer, Dawn Askin Flag of Alberta.svg Shannon Kleibrink, Amy Nixon, Bronwen Webster, Chelsey Bell Grande Prairie, Alberta $100,000
2010 Flag of Alberta.svg Cheryl Bernard, Susan O'Connor, Carolyn Darbyshire, Cori Bartel Flag of Alberta.svg Crystal Webster, Lori Olson-Johns, Samantha Preston, Stephanie Malekoff Dawson Creek, British Columbia $100,000
2011 Flag of Manitoba.svg Jennifer Jones, Kaitlyn Lawes, Jill Officer, Dawn Askin Flag of Ontario.svg Rachel Homan, Emma Miskew, Alison Kreviazuk, Lisa Weagle Grande Prairie, Alberta $100,000
2012 Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Stefanie Lawton, Sherry Anderson, Sherri Singler, Marliese Kasner Flag of Manitoba.svg Cathy Overton-Clapham, Jenna Loder, Ashley Howard, Breanne Meakin Summerside, Prince Edward Island $100,000
2013 Flag of Scotland.svg Eve Muirhead, Anna Sloan, Vicki Adams, Claire Hamilton Flag of Sweden.svg Margaretha Sigfridsson, Maria Prytz, Christina Bertrup, Maria Wennerström Toronto, Ontario $100,000
2014 Flag of Manitoba.svg Jennifer Jones, Kaitlyn Lawes, Jill Officer, Dawn McEwen Flag of Ontario.svg Rachel Homan, Emma Miskew, Alison Kreviazuk, Lisa Weagle Summerside, Prince Edward Island $100,000
2015 Flag of Scotland.svg Eve Muirhead, Anna Sloan, Vicki Adams, Sarah Reid Flag of Russia.svg Anna Sidorova, Margarita Fomina, Alexandra Saitova, Ekaterina Galkina Toronto, Ontario $100,000
2016 Flag of Scotland.svg Eve Muirhead, Cathy Overton-Clapham, Vicki Adams, Sarah Reid Flag of Manitoba.svg Jennifer Jones, Kaitlyn Lawes, Jill Officer, Dawn McEwen Toronto, Ontario $100,000
2017 Flag of Manitoba.svg Jennifer Jones, Kaitlyn Lawes, Jill Officer, Dawn McEwen Flag of Alberta.svg Val Sweeting, Lori Olson-Johns, Dana Ferguson, Rachelle Brown Toronto, Ontario $150,000
2018 Flag of the United States.svg Jamie Sinclair, Alex Carlson, Vicky Persinger, Monica Walker Flag of Manitoba.svg Jennifer Jones, Kaitlyn Lawes, Jill Officer, Dawn McEwen Toronto, Ontario $150,000
2019 Flag of Manitoba.svg Kerri Einarson, Val Sweeting, Shannon Birchard, Briane Meilleur Flag of Sweden.svg Anna Hasselborg, Sara McManus, Agnes Knochenhauer, Sofia Mabergs Toronto, Ontario $150,000
2020 Cancelled [6]
2021 Flag of Manitoba.svg Kerri Einarson, Val Sweeting, Shannon Birchard, Briane Meilleur Flag of Ontario.svg Rachel Homan, Emma Miskew, Sarah Wilkes, Joanne Courtney Calgary, Alberta [21] $175,000
2022 Flag of Sweden.svg Anna Hasselborg, Sara McManus, Agnes Knochenhauer, Sofia Mabergs Flag of Manitoba.svg Kerri Einarson, Val Sweeting, Shannon Birchard, Briane Meilleur Toronto, Ontario $175,000
2023 Flag of Sweden.svg Isabella Wranå, Almida de Val, Maria Larsson, Linda Stenlund Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Alina Pätz (Fourth), Silvana Tirinzoni (Skip), Carole Howald, Briar Schwaller-Hürlimann Toronto, Ontario $175,000
2024 Toronto, Ontario $175,000

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References

  1. ↑ "Gushue, Homan headline field for Players' Championship". www.thegrandslamofcurling.com. Archived from the original on 2017-03-23.
  2. ↑ "8 Ends: Players' Championship set for special 25th anniversary". www.thegrandslamofcurling.com. Archived from the original on 2017-04-15.
  3. 1 2 "WCT title 'spiel at crossroads". Regina Leader-Post. March 30, 1995. p. C5. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  4. 1 2 "World Curling Tour on verge of big break". Edmonton Journal. December 9, 1995. p. D5. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  5. ↑ "About the Players' Championship - Grand Slam of Curling". www.thegrandslamofcurling.com. Archived from the original on 2014-09-11.
  6. 1 2 3 "GSOC cancels remaining events of 2019–20 season". Grand Slam of Curling. Grand Slam of Curling. March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  7. ↑ "Qualification for the Players' Championship - Grand Slam of Curling". www.thegrandslamofcurling.com. Archived from the original on 2014-09-11.
  8. ↑ "Format and Qualification".
  9. ↑ "Format for the Players' Championship - Grand Slam of Curling". www.thegrandslamofcurling.com. Archived from the original on 2014-09-11.
  10. ↑ "Savage en route again to championship battle". Calgary Herald. February 21, 1993. p. F1. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  11. ↑ "Icy Jackpot". Calgary Herald. February 22, 1993. p. C1. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  12. ↑ "Rivalry Takes Road". Calgary Herald. March 26, 1994. p. C4. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  13. ↑ "Howard heading off to Olympic trials". Regina Leader-Post. March 24, 1997. p. F2. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  14. ↑ "Local Scene". Regina Leader-Post. March 21, 1997. p. C4. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Peters positive". Winnipeg Sun. March 30, 1998. p. 42. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
  16. ↑ "Martin wins World Tour championship". Red Deer Advocate. March 30, 1998. p. A8. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  17. ↑ "B.C.'s trio has just one win after four draws". Vancouver Sun. March 18, 1999. p. F5. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  18. ↑ "Top guns shot down at world curling tourney". Edmonton Journal. March 18, 2000. p. D5. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  19. ↑ "In the hack..." Calgary Herald. March 21, 2001. p. E5. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  20. 1 2 "Players' Championship title toughest to get your hands on". Calgary Herald. April 13, 2006. p. F3. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  21. 1 2 Brazeau, Jonathan (December 3, 2020). "GSOC looking to hold 2 events in proposed Calgary curling bubble" . Retrieved December 3, 2020.
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