The curling season got underway for Brad Jacobs and his team from Sault Ste. Marie’s Community First Curling Centre on Friday.
It looked a little different, and it was a little later than usual as well, but the Jacobs rink was on the ice Friday for a pair of games at the Stu Sells Tankard, a World Curling Tour event being held this weekend in Waterloo.
The annual event, which is usually held in Oakville, was shifted to Waterloo this year and is being played at the KW Granite Club.
Jacobs got off to a good start at the event with a pair of victories on Friday.
The Jacobs rink, which includes third Marc Kennedy, second E.J. Harnden, and lead Ryan Harnden, opened action at the three-day event on Friday morning with a 5-3 win over Owen Purdy of Kingston, Ont.
With the hammer to start, Jacobs blanked the opening end before taking the lead with three in the second end.
Purdy would cut the lead to one after scoring a single with the hammer in the third and stealing one more in the fourth.
Jacobs proceeded to restore the lead with a single in the fifth and a steal of one more in the sixth end.
Purdy capped off the scoring with a single in the seventh end.
Team Jacobs wrapped up the day with a 6-5 win over Sam Steep of Seaforth, Ont. on Friday evening.
After Steep opened the scoring with a pair in the opening end, Jacobs tied the game with a pair of his own in the second end before taking the lead by stealing three in the third end to go up 5-2.
Sitting two already, Jacobs made a draw with his final rock of the third end. With the final rock, Steep tried to hit Jacobs’ final rock thin to take out the three Jacobs rocks but slid through the house, giving the Jacobs rink the steal.
Jacobs would go up 6-2 thanks to a steal of one in the fourth end.
After blanking the fifth end, Steep cut into the Jacobs lead with a pair in the sixth.
A steal in the seventh end would pull Steep to within one before Jacobs blanked the eighth end to seal the win and move to 2-0.
The Jacobs rink is back in action Saturday morning against Sylvain Bellavance of the Boucherville Curling Club in Quebec.
The team is also set to play a pair of other games on Saturday, facing Rob Ainsley of Toronto in the afternoon draw and Tom Pruliere of Paisley, Ont. in the late evening draw.