News Tour Challenge

PARADISE, N.L. — Team Brad Gushue has been the crowd favourite at Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling events in the past, but playing in their own backyard will be something else.

The St. John’s rink featuring Gushue, third Mark Nichols, second Brett Gallant, and lead Geoff Walker were cheered like hometown heroes at the 2013-14 National and 2014-15 Syncrude Elite 10 events in Fort McMurray, Alta. (aka Newfoundland’s second-largest city).

Now the Pinty’s GSOC series is set to return to the Rock for the first time since the 2008 Players’ Championship with the all-new Tour Challenge, starting Tuesday night at the Paradise Double Ice Complex.

Gushue said during last week’s Stu Sells Oakville Tankard that he’s very excited for the homecoming event.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve played in a Grand Slam in Newfoundland,” said Gushue, 2006 Olympic gold medallist and a three-time Grand Slam champion. “I know there’s going to be quite a few people out there watching and supporting the event and I imagine most of them will be behind us so it’s going to be fun.

“We had the chance to play in Fort McMurray where we were the crowd favourites and to get another chance to play where we’re going to be the crowd favourites is going to be a lot of fun.”

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Being the home-province favourite didn’t work out too well last year for others although that was partly because Team Gushue came up big in the finals to win two Grand Slam titles. Gushue defeated Winnipeg’s Mike McEwen to capture the Masters in Selkirk, Man., and edged Saskatoon’s Steve Laycock for the Canadian Open title in Yorkton, Sask.

Still, Gushue said it’s a better experience having the crowd on his side than not.

“Those guys had good weeks and fortunately for us we had a couple good games to upset them but I think it only helps having that support,” Gushue said. “You miss a shot or two and you know as soon as you make a shot the crowd roars and it spurs you on. It’s definitely more fun to be the crowd favourite than it is to be playing against the crowd favourite.”

Gushue’s opening draw opponent is Winnipeg’s Reid Carruthers, who is looking forward to facing the favourite right off the bat.

“Some people like having that role of playing against the hometown (team) and being the spoiler and I think our guys are going to look forward to it,” Carruthers said. “It’s fun that we actually get to play them first game too rather than later in the week. It will be a really neat game to win because it kind of sets up the momentum for the week and we play a top team.”

Gushue already has a pair of wins over Carruthers this season including a 5-3 victory in the Stu Sells Oakville Tankard final Monday.

The Tour Challenge, featuring 30 men’s and 30 women’s teams competing in two tiers, runs Tuesday to Sunday at the Paradise Double Ice Complex with TV coverage beginning Thursday at 11 a.m. ET / 8 a.m. PT on Sportsnet.