Gushue to headline field for Boost National
Brad Gushue and his crew from St. John’s will lead the way for the Boost National in their own backyard of Conception Bay South, N.L.
The Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling announced Tuesday the full list of teams for its fourth event and second major of the season taking place Dec. 11-16 at Conception Bay South Arena.
The 11-time title winners and defending Pinty’s Cup champions Team Gushue headline the men’s field, which also includes the likes of reigning world champions Team Niklas Edin of Sweden, Canadian Beef Masters winners Team John Epping from Toronto, recently crowned Tour Challenge Tier 1 victors Team Brad Jacobs of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., and more.
Olympic gold medallists and world No. 1 ranked Team Anna Hasselborg of Sweden top the field for the women’s division alongside defending Boost National champs Team Jennifer Jones of Winnipeg and this month’s Tour Challenge Tier 1 winners Team Rachel Homan of Ottawa, plus more.
The Boost National features 15 of the top men’s teams and 15 of the top women’s teams from around the globe who were invited based on the World Curling Tour’s Order of Merit rankings. Both divisions will be split into three pools for round-robin play with the top eight overall qualifying for the playoffs.
A $250,000 total purse is on the line plus points towards the Pinty’s Cup, which is awarded to the overall season champions following the conclusion of the Players’ Championship in April. Winners of the Boost National also receive berths to the season-ending Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling event, the Humpty’s Champions Cup, running April 23-28 at Saskatoon’s Merlis Belsher Place.
The Boost National is one of the original four events in the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling and has been held every season since the inaugural 2001-02 campaign. Originally a men’s invitational, a women’s division was added to the event starting in 2015.
Full-event passes are already sold out for the Boost National. A limited number of standing room tickets will be available for purchase Thursday at Noon NT at mileonecentre.com or by calling 709-576-7657.
Broadcast coverage begins Dec. 13 on Sportsnet, Sportsnet NOW (Canada) and Yare (international).
Keep it here at thegrandslamofcurling.com for more updates including a full draw schedule of round-robin matches.
