Morning Star Staff
John Morris did all he could to tie things up in his quarterfinal Monday morning at the World Curling Tour’s Canad Inns Men’s Classic in Portage la Prairie, Man.
But Saskatoon’s Steve Laycock had the final answer.
Laycock, the 2015 champion, drew to the button with his final stone in an extra end to beat Morris 6-5.
Vernon’s Jim Cotter throws final stones for the Morris rink, which features the Kelowna front end of Tyrel Griffith and Rick Sawatsky.
The teams traded scoring throughout the eight regulation ends, with Laycock picking up single points in the first, third and fifth ends, and Morris countering with singles of his own in ends two, four and six.
After Laycock went ahead 5-3 with a deuce in seven, Morris and Cotter forced the extra end by scoring two with the hammer in the eighth.
The loss was worth $4,000 for Morris and company, who went 5-2 in Manitoba.
Morris won his first three games against Winnipeg rinks, beating Steen Sigurdson 7-4, Jason Gunnlaugson 6-5 and edging four-time event winner Mike McEwen 3-2.
That put the B.C. rink into an A event qualifier against 2014 Olympic gold medalist Brad Jacobs of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., who won 7-4.
Morris won his first game in the B draw, 5-3 over Craig Brown of Blaine, Wash., to advance to a B event playoff qualifier against Winnipeg’s Reid Carruthers.
Morris/Cotter picked up one in the final end for a 6-5 victory, securing a playoff spot.
Carruthers dropped down to the C event, won a qualifier, then won three straight playoff games to take home the $18,000 top prize.
Carruthers beat Kevin Koe of Calgary 9-4 in the quarters, knocked off Shaun Meachem of Regina 4-2 in the semis and beat Charley Thomas of Edmonton 6-5 in the final. Thomas pocketed $10,000.