Men's Tour

Direct Horizontal Drilling Fall Classic from Edmonton, AB 

Oct 7-10, 2016

Purse: $50,000

Saskatoon's Steve Laycock won his first event of the year with a perfect 6-0 performance in Edmonton. The foursome of Laycock, third Kirk Muyres, second Colton Flasch and lead Dallan Muyres topped Jason Gunnlaugson of Winnipeg in the quarter-finals, John Morris and his BC crew in the semi-finals before finally getting the better of Winnipeg's Reid Carruthers in the final, 5-4. 

The 24-rink field featured such names as Edmonton's Brendan Bottcher (lost to Morris in quarters), two-time defending champ Kevin Koe (lost to Carruthers in semis), Canadian junior champion Matt Dunstone (failed to make playoffs) and Charley Thomas of Edmonton (lost to Carruthers in quarters).

Team Laycock won one event last season, outside of their Saskatchewan championship.

 

StuSells Toronto Tankard from Toronto, ON

Oct 6-10, 2016

Purse: $48,000

St. John's skip Brad Gushue is still out with his hip/groin injury, but that didn'd stop his rink from winning a big event in Toronto. Skipper Mark Nichols (the regular vice), spare third Adam Spencer, second Brett Gallant and lead Geoff Walker defeated John Epping in his home city, 5-4, to pick up their first event win of the season. They also defeated Mark Bice in the quarter-finals and Korea's Chang-Min Kim in the semi-finals. Team Nichols didn't lose once over the five day event. 

 

Team Gushue Photo: CurlingZone

A photo posted by @d_curling on

The rink from Newfoundland, who made the final of last year's Brier and finished first on the WCT money list, has been competitive in 2016-17 despite missing their best player, also grabbing a runner-up finish at the Shorty Jenkins Classic in mid-September.

Other squads in the 24-rink field included Glenn Howard (lost in quarters to Epping), Brad Jacobs (lost in quarters to Kim), Mark Kean (2-3, failed to make playoffs) and defending champion Mike McEwen (0-3, failed to make playoffs).

 

St. Paul Cash Spiel from St. Paul, Minnesota

Oct 7-9, 2016

Purse: $12,400 USD

American Heath McCormick won the St. Paul Cash Spiel in his home country this weekend, beating Kroy Nernberger in the championship contest, 7-2.

Defending champion Todd Birr was eliminated in the semi-final.

 

Bud Light Men's Cashspiel from Halifax, NS

Oct 7-10, 2016

Purse: $7,350

Chad Stevens bettered fellow native of Halifax Stuart Thompson in the final, 6-3. It was Stevens' first win of the season while Thompson was looking for his second having already won the Lakeshore Curling Club Cash Spiel in Lower Sackville. 

 

Man Curl Tour Classic from Winnipeg, MB

Oct 7-10, 2016

Purse: $12,000

Braden Calvert, a two-time Canadian junior champ, now has a WCT title to his name after his Winnipeg crew won the Man Curl Tour Classic on Monday. Team Calvert beat Richard Muntain in the championship game, 9-3.

 

Women's Tour 

Womens Masters Basel from Basel, Switzerland (CCT Event)

Oct 7-9, 2016

Purse: $32,100 CHF

Former world champion Eve Muirhead of Scotland took her first event win of the season by beating Swedish rival Margaretha Sigfridsson in the final, 8-6. Skip Muirhead, alongside third Anna Sloan, second Vicki Adams and lead Lauren Gray beat Anna Kubeskova of Czech Republic in the quarters and Scotland's Hannah Fleming in the semis as well. 

Defending world champion Binia Feltscher (2-3, failed to make playoffs), money leader Anna Hasselborg (1-3, failed to make playoffs) and defending champ Anna Sidorova of Russia (lost in quarters) were also there.

 

StuSells Toronto Tankard from Toronto, ON

Oct 6-10, 2016

Purse: $17,000

Ontario's Team Sherry Middaugh continued their hot start to the 2016-17 by winning the StuSells Toronto Tankard amongst a tough field. Skip Middaugh, third Jo-Ann Rizzo, second Lee Merklinger and lead Leigh Armstrong went a perfect 7-0 over the four-day event in Toronto, beating Jacqueline Harrison in the quarters, Mary-Anne Arsenault in the semis and Cathy Auld in the final, 5-3.

It's their second win of the season after taking the KW Fall Classic a few weeks ago. 

 

Curlers Corner Autumn Gold Curling Classic from Calgary, AB

Oct 7-10, 2016

Purse: $50,000

Olympic champ Jennifer Jones made her return to the rink this week, making it all the way to the final of the Curlers Corner Autumn Gold Curling Classic before losing to Casey Scheidegger, 6-5. It was Team Scheidegger's second event win of the 2016-17 season and moves them up to second on the CTRS.

Skip Scheidegger, third Cary-Anne McTaggart, second Jessie Scheidegger and lead Stephanie Enright lost their first game of the week and then reeled off eight straight wins, including beating Selena Sturmay in the quarters and Briane Meilleur in the semis.

The massive 32-rink field featured such team as Saskatchewan's Sherry Anderson (2-3, failed to make playoffs), Scotties champ Chelsea Carey (2-3, failed to make playoffs), Manitoba champ Kerri Einarson (2-3, failed to make playoffs), Allison Flaxey of Ontario (lost in quarters), Saskatchewan's Stefanie Lawton (1-3, failed to make playoffs) as well as Edmonton's Kelsey Rocque (lost to Sweeting in quarters) and Val Sweeting (lost to Jones in semis).

Defending champions, Team Rachel Homan, did not play in this event.

 

St. Paul Cash Spiel from St. Paul, Minnesota

Oct 7-9, 2016

Purse: $6,450

American Cory Christensen defended her title at the St. Paul Cash Spiel, this time beating Nina Roth in the final, 7-6. This was Team Christensen's first event win of the season.

The same 10-rink field included Team Jamie Sinclair, who were ousted in the semis by Christensen.

 

New Scotland Clothing Ladies Cashspiel from Halifax, NS

Oct 7-10, 2016

Purse: $7,350 

Kristen MacDiarmid topped Theresa Breen in the final, 5-3.

 

Looking Ahead

 

Men's Tour

Canad Inns Men's Classic from Portage la Prairie, MB

Oct 14-17, 2016

Defending Champion: Steve Laycock

 

Hub International Crown of Curling from Kamloops, BC

Oct 14-17, 2016

Defending Champion: Sean Geall

 

Stroud Sleeman Cash Spiel from Stroud, ON

Oct 13-16, 2016

Defending Champion: Codey Maus

 

McKee Homes Fall Curling Classic from Airdrie, AB

Oct 14-16, 2016

Defending Champion: Aaron Sluchinski

 

Women’s Tour

Hub International Crown of Curling from Kamloops, BC

Oct 14-17, 2016

Defending Champion: Un-Chi Gim

 

Stroud Sleeman Cash Spiel from Stroud, ON

Oct 13-16, 2016

Defending Champion: Julie Tippin

 

Atkins Curling Supplies Classic from Winnipeg, MB

Oct 14-17, 2016

Defending Champion: Darcy Robertson