News National

SAULT STE. MARIE, Ont. — Winnipeg’s Mike McEwen captured his fourth Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling men’s title fending off hometown hero Brad Jacobs 5-2 in the National final Sunday.

McEwen, third B.J. Neufeld, second Matt Wozniak and lead Denni Neufeld earned $23,000 CAD and continued their incredible start to the season. The foursome have won five titles through six events while also finishing runner-up at the Masters earlier this month.

“It feels like a lot of validation of the things that we’re doing as a team,” McEwen said, “and that feels really good.”

The Olympic gold medallist Jacobs, searching for his first Grand Slam title on home ice, held the hammer coming home trailing by two but couldn’t get the equalizing deuce to force an extra end with his Hail Mary shot missing the mark and handing McEwen another point.

It didn’t start off too well for McEwen as he attempted an angle raise takeout to score two in the first but missed and ended up giving a point it Jacobs. McEwen then looked to score three in the second but fumbled again as he couldn’t push Jacobs’s rock far enough and was held to just one point to tie it 1-1.

A steal in the third for McEwen and a single in the fourth for Jacobs kept things tight. McEwen grabbed the lead for good with a single in the fifth and added a steal in seventh when Jacobs went big to attempt to score two in but nudged McEwen’s shot rock closer to the pin.

“It was intense,” McEwen admitted. “I didn’t feel normal through the first four ends. I was a little shaky, I wasn’t feeling myself but the boys played so well in front of me that despite me being a little bit off that they hung in there, made a lot of shots in front of me, and I was able to make some big ones for the team at the end.”

McEwen won the World Cup of Curling (now known as the Masters) and the Canadian Open during the 2010-11 campaign and successfully defended the Canadian Open the follow season. He is now just a Players’ Championship away from completing a career Grand Slam joining the likes of Kevin Martin, Glenn Howard, Wayne Middaugh and Jeff Stoughton as the only skips to accomplish the feat.

Jacobs, third Ryan Fry, second E.J. Harnden and lead Ryan Harnden collected $14,000 CAD.

The Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling season resumes with the Canadian Open, Dec. 9-14, at the Gallagher Centre in Yorkton, Sask.