New-look Grand Slam of Curling series kicks off under new ownership

Manitoba-Carruthers third Reid Carruthers watches his shot while playing Team Manitoba-Dunstone during the playoffs at the Brier, in Regina, on Friday, March 8, 2024. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press)

CHARLOTTETOWN — The Grand Slam of Curling season kicked off Tuesday with a new look and improved viewing options as The Curling Group made its presence felt right away at the HearingLife Tour Challenge.

Live online streaming was available for all Tier-1 games at the Bell Aliant Centre in Charlottetown, addressing a longtime complaint of curling fans eager to see the first two days of competition and non-feature games.

It was one of the first noticeable differences since the series was purchased from Sportsnet last April by a group led by former PointsBet Canada chief commercial officer Nic Sulsky and Rumble Gaming founder Mike Cotton.

"I think if we can achieve half of what they're looking to do, I think it's going to be good for the sport," veteran skip Brad Gushue said in a recent interview. "I think the Grand Slams stayed a little stagnant in the last probably five or 10 years.

"Nic and Mike certainly want to grow it and expand it, which I think is good for this generation and certainly for the next generation of top curlers."

Sportsnet, which had owned the series since 2012, remains the domestic broadcaster of the series. It will continue with its traditional Thursday start at Slam events leading up to the finals on Sunday.

The Curling Group will oversee operations of all five Slams on the calendar. Sulsky, who serves as chief executive officer, has said that any major changes to the series will likely wait until the current quadrennial wraps in early 2026.

Tinkering with the product was already underway, though, with a new logo, refreshed website and the rollout of a new podcast. Organizers also planned live music and entertainment at the 'Apres Curl' area at Slam host venues.

"It's all good, positive and exciting," said curling broadcaster Mike Harris. "I'm excited as someone who has covered the sport for 20 years to see how much impact these new ideas can have.

"It has always been an ongoing challenge for as long as I can remember, to try to attract younger audiences to the events and to follow along. I think that's their primary focus."

Live streaming -- a first for the Slam series -- was handled by the Canadian-based HomeTeam Live service. However, the opening draw came with some hiccups.

Team introductions could be heard but not seen. The audio was raw from ice level rather than via player microphones.

Scoreboard graphics were sporadically shown and weren't updated on some sheets. Camera viewpoints and angles were jarring at times and sometimes rock movement in the house was missed altogether.

One sheet had commentary while the other three did not. Live streaming was not available for the Tier-2 competition featuring lower-ranked teams.

The Curling Group announced last week that it had raised US$5 million in seed funding to "take the sport of curling to new heights" through strategic investments, innovation, and content production that will broaden the sport's global reach.

A five-person board of directors, which included former Bell Media president Maryann Turcke as chair, was also introduced.

"I'm feeling very excited about where the state of the Grand Slams is heading and what they're going to be," said Canadian skip Matt Dunstone. "I think we've got the right people in there for sure."

The top 16 men's teams and top 16 women's teams based on the final rankings last season were invited to play in the triple-knockout Tier-1 event.

Winnipeg's Reid Carruthers dropped a 7-5 decision to Sweden's Niklas Edin in the first draw and Bruce Mouat topped fellow Scot Cameron Bryce 6-2. Sweden's Anna Hasselborg dropped an 8-5 decision to Japan's Satsuki Fujisawa and Italy's Joel Retornaz beat American Korey Dropkin 6-3.

In Draw 2, Calgary's Kevin Koe topped Switzerland's Yannick Schwaller 7-4 and Brad Jacobs of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., shaded American John Shuster 6-5.

Switzerland's Xenia Schwaller edged Sweden's Isabella Wrana 7-6 and Ross Whyte beat James Craik 6-3 in a battle of Scottish teams.

Two more draws were scheduled for later Tuesday.

   This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 1, 2024.