Flaxey steals WFG Masters playoff spot from Einarson
OKOTOKS, Alta. — Allison Flaxey of Caledon, Ont., swiped the final playoff spot at the WFG Masters from Winnipeg’s Kerri Einarson with a 6-2 win in Saturday morning’s tiebreaker game.
Flaxey settled for a single in the fourth to make it all square 2-2 at the break and then rode the steal train all the way grabbing one point in five, two in six and another single in seven.
Team Flaxey qualified for the playoffs at a Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling event for the first time ever.
Flaxey now faces on EunJung Kim of South Korea in the quarterfinals (watch on Sportsnet at 3 p.m. MT), with Binia Feltscher and Silvana Tirinzoni meeting in an all-Swiss rink battle, Anna Hasselborg of Sweden taking on Calgary’s Chelsea Carey and Winnipeg’s Jennifer Jones playing Ottawa’s Rachel Homan.
Meanwhile, Scotland’s David Murdoch meets top-seed Steve Laycock of Saskatoon in Saturday’s men’s quarterfinals. Toronto’s John Epping finished as the No. 2 seed and takes on Niklas Edin of Sweden. Reid Carruthers and Mike McEwen clash in an all-Winnipeg rink affair and it’s a battle of Olympic gold medallists with Brad Jacobs of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., taking on the Mark Nichols-skipped Team Gushue crew from St. John’s, N.L. (watch live on CBC at 11 a.m. MT).
NOTES: The WFG Masters is the first of seven events on the 2016-17 Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling schedule. … The event is also the first of four majors in the series alongside the Boost National, Meridian Canadian Open and WestJet Players’ Championship. … The WFG Masters runs through to Sunday at Pason Centennial Arena.
