News Canadian Open

Camrose, Alta., is going to kick off the New Year for the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling.

Encana Arena will host the Canadian Open running Jan. 16-21, 2018.

Tickets will be announced at a future date, keep it here for updates.

The Canadian Open is the third major and fourth event of the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling season and features 16 of top men’s teams and 16 of the top women’s teams from around the world. A triple knockout format is used during the preliminary round, instead of round-robin pools, and teams must win three games before they lose three in order to qualify for the playoffs.

Brad Gushue of St. John’s, N.L., is the defending men’s champion after throwing a perfect game against Sweden’s Niklas Edin during the final in North Battleford, Sask. It was also only Gushue’s second event of the season after returning from a hip/groin issue. Casey Scheidegger of Lethbridge, Alta., won the women’s title in her elite-level series debut stealing a point in the final end to clip Silvana Tirinzoni of Switzerland.

The Canadian Open is one of the four original events in the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling dating back to the inaugural 2001-02 season.