Brad Gushue tops Bruce Mouat to clinch National final
The Canadian skip captured his twelfth Grand Slam of Curling men’s career title all the while halting the rolling steam train of Team Mouat who had been on the hunt for their fourth consecutive slam win in Alberta.
Curling
2006 Canadian Olympic gold medallist Brad Gushue took his twelfth career Grand Slam of Curling (GSOC) men’s title after defeating Bruce Mouat 5-2 in the Boost National final on Sunday (November 7).
Team Gushue, consisting of second Brett Galant, third Mark Nichols and Geoff Walker, had a strong week in Alberta. They waltzed through the tournament unbeaten at 6-0, giving up only 19 points.
In the final they outshot Mouat 94-91 to comfortably take the win.
The Scottish rink with third Grant Hardie, second Bobby Lammie and lead Hammy McMillan Jr., had been on an incredible run of form.
At the Masters in Oakville Mouat claimed his third consecutive GSOC title promoting him into an elite circle of four other curlers who can also claim such an achievement.
Had the Scot prevailed over Gushue the Scots would have gone four from four, a feat only ever matched by Kevin Martin who won five on the bounce back in 2007. But it was not meant to be four the foursome who found themselves outright denied by the Canadians on the day.
“It’s nice to pull it out,” Gushue said to GSOC after his victory. “It was a tough battle. Bruce and his team have been playing so well over the last year. It took our best game of the week and fortunately, we picked a good time to do it.”
As the curling season kicks on with the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics on the horizon, Gushue will now prepare for the Canadian curling Olympic trials slated to begin November 20 in Saskatoon.
He and his rink will take on other big name teams including Team Bottcher, Team Dunstone and Team Jacobs for a chance to wear the Maple Leaf in China.
Meanwhile Mouat and men will turn to the European curling Championships taking place from November 20 to November 27.
The Scots beat Team Edin back in 2018 on their only appearance at the tournament. They will be hoping to achieve something similar later this month in Lillehammer.