The Players' Championship, currently known as the Princess Auto Players' Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the final event of the Grand Slam of Curling tour, and is formerly the championship of the World Curling Tour season.
| Players' Championship | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Established | 1993 |
| 2024 host city | Toronto, Ontario |
| 2024 arena | Mattamy Athletic Centre |
| Purse | CAD $175,000 |
| Current champions (2024) | |
| Men |  Brad Gushue |
| Women |  Silvana Tirinzoni |
| Current edition | |
From 2016 to 2019, it was the penultimate slam of the curling season, and the last of the four "majors".[1] The event was one of the original Grand Slam events when they were instituted in the 2001–02 season for men and for the 2006–07 season for women.
History
editThe event began as the "VO Cup" before the Grand Slam era in 1993, as part of the very first World Curling Tour season.[2] The event was known as the VO Cup for two seasons before title sponsor Seagram's Distillery pulled out.[3] With no sponsor, the 1995 event was saved at the last minute, and continued the next season thanks to a TV deal with TSN.[4]
A women's event was introduced in 2006.[5]
From 2007 to 2009, it was a qualifying tournament for the Canadian Olympic Curling Trials, and had barred foreign teams from entering (unlike the other Slams). Scotland's Eve Muirhead became the first non-Canadian skip to win the event in 2013, while Sweden's Niklas Edin became the first non Canadian skip to win the men's event in 2017.
To date, Edmonton's Kevin Martin has won the most Players' Championships with 8. On the women's side, Winnipeg's Jennifer Jones (and her long-time second, Jill Officer) have won the most championships with 6.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, both the 2020 Players' Championship and the 2020 Champions Cup were cancelled.[6]
Qualification
editThe top 12 teams on the men's and women's WCT year-to-date rankings respectively qualify for the event. Teams that decline their invitations are replaced by the next highest ranked team.[7]
Format
editSince 2023, and from 2014 to 2021, the event featured 12 teams split into two pools of six which compete in a round robin, with the top six teams advancing to a single game elimination playoff. In 2021, the number of teams earning playoff berths was reduced from eight.[8][9] The 2022 event was a triple knockout.
Past champions
editMen
edit
Women
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References
edit- ^ "Gushue, Homan headline field for Players' Championship". www.thegrandslamofcurling.com. Archived from the original on 2017-03-23.
- ^ "8 Ends: Players' Championship set for special 25th anniversary". www.thegrandslamofcurling.com. Archived from the original on 2017-04-15.
- ^ a b "WCT title 'spiel at crossroads". Regina Leader-Post. March 30, 1995. p. C5. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
- ^ a b "World Curling Tour on verge of big break". Edmonton Journal. December 9, 1995. p. D5. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
- ^ "About the Players' Championship - Grand Slam of Curling". www.thegrandslamofcurling.com. Archived from the original on 2014-09-11.
- ^ a b c "GSOC cancels remaining events of 2019–20 season". Grand Slam of Curling. Grand Slam of Curling. March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
- ^ "Qualification for the Players' Championship - Grand Slam of Curling". www.thegrandslamofcurling.com. Archived from the original on 2014-09-11.
- ^ "Format and Qualification".
- ^ "Format for the Players' Championship - Grand Slam of Curling". www.thegrandslamofcurling.com. Archived from the original on 2014-09-11.
- ^ "Savage en route again to championship battle". Calgary Herald. February 21, 1993. p. F1. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- ^ "Icy Jackpot". Calgary Herald. February 22, 1993. p. C1. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- ^ "Rivalry Takes Road". Calgary Herald. March 26, 1994. p. C4. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
- ^ "Howard heading off to Olympic trials". Regina Leader-Post. March 24, 1997. p. F2. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
- ^ "Local Scene". Regina Leader-Post. March 21, 1997. p. C4. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
- ^ "Peters positive". Winnipeg Sun. March 30, 1998. p. 42. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
- ^ "Martin wins World Tour championship". Red Deer Advocate. March 30, 1998. p. A8. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- ^ "B.C.'s trio has just one win after four draws". Vancouver Sun. March 18, 1999. p. F5. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
- ^ "Top guns shot down at world curling tourney". Edmonton Journal. March 18, 2000. p. D5. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
- ^ "In the hack..." Calgary Herald. March 21, 2001. p. E5. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
- ^ a b "Players' Championship title toughest to get your hands on". Calgary Herald. April 13, 2006. p. F3. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
- ^ a b Brazeau, Jonathan (December 3, 2020). "GSOC looking to hold 2 events in proposed Calgary curling bubble". Retrieved December 3, 2020.