News Canadian Open

Full event, weekend and single draw tickets are now available for the Meridian Canadian Open running Jan. 16-21, 2018, at the Encana Arena in Camrose, Alta.

Visit Camrosegsoc.goigniter.com or call 1-780-678-2868 to purchase your tickets today.

This will be the final major tune-up for teams before heading to the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

The Meridian Canadian Open is the third major and fourth event of the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling season and features 16 of top men’s teams and 16 of the top women’s teams from around the world. A triple knockout format is used during the preliminary round, instead of round-robin pools, and teams must win three games before they lose three in order to qualify for the playoffs.

Brad Gushue of St. John’s, N.L., is the defending men’s champion after throwing a perfect game against Sweden’s Niklas Edin during the final in North Battleford, Sask. It was also only Gushue’s second event of the season after returning from a hip/groin issue. Casey Scheidegger of Lethbridge, Alta., won the women’s title in her elite-level series debut stealing a point in the final end to clip Silvana Tirinzoni of Switzerland.

Points are also up for grabs for the Bonus Cup, award to the overall season champions following the conclusion of the Players’ Championship in April. Gushue currently leads the standings on the men’s side at the midway mark — thanks to title wins at the Tour Challenge Tier 1 and Masters — while Winnipeg’s Jennifer Jones is in charge in the women’s division following back-to-back victories at the Masters and BOOST National.

The Meridian Canadian Open is one of the four original events in the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling dating back to the inaugural 2001-02 season.