News Canadian Open

Brad Jacobs’s quest for a third consecutive Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling title will begin against Glenn Howard in the opening round of the 2020 Meridian Canadian Open.

The fourth event and third major of the series returns Jan. 14-19 to the Gallagher Centre in Yorkton, Sask.

Jacobs, from Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., has won the past two GSOC men’s championships claiming the KIOTI Tractor Tour Challenge and BOOST National.

Sweden’s Anna Hasselborg is also aiming to make it three straight in the series on the women’s side and plays Edmonton’s Laura Walker in the fourth draw.

The Meridian Canadian Open features a triple knockout bracket format where teams must win three games before they lose three in order to qualify for the playoffs. Teams that lose three games are eliminated from contention. Sixteen of the top men’s teams and 16 of the top women’s teams from around the world will compete in the event.

Other first-round men’s matches include Yannick Schwaller of Switzerland vs. Winnipeg’s Mike McEwen, Scotland’s Bruce Mouat vs. Korey Dropkin of the United States, Sweden’s Niklas Edin vs. Regina’s Matt Dunstone, Toronto’s John Epping vs. Saskatoon’s Kirk Muyres, Calgary’s Kevin Koe vs. Peter de Cruz of Switzerland, Brad Gushue of St. John’s, N.L., vs. Winnipeg’s Jason Gunnlaugson, and defending champion Brendan Bottcher of Edmonton vs. Scotland’s Ross Paterson.

The women’s brackets also see Tracy Fleury of East St. Paul, Man., vs. Min-ji Kim of South Korea, Scotland’s Eve Muirhead vs. Switzerland’s Elena Stern, Satsuki Fujisawa vs. Sayaka Yoshimura in an all-Japan matchup, Kerri Einarson of Gimli, Man., vs. Edmonton’s Kelsey Rocque, defending champion Rachel Homan of Ottawa vs. Calgary’s Chelsea Carey, Switzerland’s Silvana Tirinzoni vs. Nina Roth of the United States, and Winnipeg’s Jennifer Jones vs. Russia’s Alina Kovaleva.

Check out the full draw schedule of matches by CLICKING HERE.

Yorkton’s Gallagher Centre previously hosted the Meridian Canadian Open in 2014 and 2015.

Full-event and weekend passes plus flex packs are available at meridian.goigniter.com. Individual tickets available starting Jan. 3. Can’t make it to Yorkton? Broadcast coverage begins Jan. 16 on Sportsnet and streaming online at Sportsnet NOW (Canada) or Yare (international).