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McEwen wins the all-Manitoba match-up over reigning Brier and World champion Stoughton, completing an undefeated week in Kingston, ON

 

KINGSTON, ON, December 18, 2011 – It was a match-up of two familiar foes in today’s championship final at the BDO Canadian Open at the K-Rock Centre in Kingston, ON as Mike McEwen came out on top in his hard-fought battle with Jeff Stoughton. Along with the title of champion at the second Capital One Grand Slam of Curling event of the season, the teams were vying for a larger share in the $100,000 purse and valuable Canadian Team Ranking System (CTRS) points.

 

Both playing out of Winnipeg, MB, McEwen and Stoughton had met many times before, including the last Manitoba provincial play-downs which Stoughton won in an extra end. Following that win, Stoughton went on to with the 2011 Brier and the World Championship. McEwen, however, got some revenge with his win today over his provincial rival, preventing Stoughton from claiming his first title of the 2011-12 season.

 

McEwen was the defending champion coming into the BDO Canadian Open and had not lost a game all week leading up to the final. As this year's champion, McEwen takes home $25,000 and 40 CTRS points. The win today gives him three Grand Slam titles for his career, something he’s very proud of.

 

“In my opinion, other than a national championship, winning a Grand Slam is the pinnacle of our sport,” said McEwen. “You’re playing the 18 best teams in the world all at once, so anytime you can come out on top it’s a really good feeling.”

 

The teams got off to a conservative start, blanking the first end in which players on both teams took time to adjust to some fast ice conditions. In the second end, McEwen was able to take advantage of a miscue when Stoughton’s last shot came up short, leaving McEwen a draw to the eight-foot ring to open the scoring with two. McEwen then forced Stoughton into taking a single point in the third end and took back the hammer; however, the tables were turned in the fourth end when Stoughton forced McEwen into a single, making the score 3-1 in favour of McEwen at the halfway point.

 

Stoughton had a chance to blank the fifth end with a double-takeout; however, his final stone dug in and remained in the house to score a single point, giving McEwen the hammer. McEwen re-took a two-point lead in the sixth, then increased his lead to three in the seventh end when Stoughton’s shot with the hammer came up short once again. Stoughton threatened to tie the game in the eighth end when his first shot removed two McEwen stones from the house, leaving him lying three, however, McEwen was able to execute a tough double-takeout to run Stoughton out of stones and secure the 5-2 victory.

 

Also taking place today at Kingston’s K-Rock Centre was the second quarter-final event in the Capital One Million Dollar Button contest. Six tournament attendees were given one chance to draw to the button, with the contestant whose rock stops closest to the button declared the winner. Twenty-five-year curling veteran Bill MacCormick of Kingston won today’s quarter-final with a draw that stopped 39 inches from the pin. For MacCormick wins a trip for two to the Capital One Million Dollar Button semifinal event in Summerside, PEI, during the GP Car and Home Players’ Championship in April, 2012, where he will compete with six other semifinalists for the opportunity to draw to the button for a chance at $1 million.

 

The six quarter-final participants in today’s event were randomly selected from the ballots submitted on-site during the GP Car and Home World Cup of Curling. Two more semifinalists will qualify at the two remaining Capital One Grand Slam of Curling events later this season and an additional three semifinalists will be chosen randomly from entries submitted between now and March 25, 2012, on the contest website at milliondollarbutton.ca.

 

The next Capital One Grand Slam of Curling event on the schedule is The National, scheduled from January 25-29, 2012 at Dawson Creek, BC’s EnCana Events Centre. Tickets are on sale now at the Tiger Box Office Plus in the EnCana Events Centre and online at www.dawsonco-optickets.com.