Jacobs captures Tour Challenge title

Make it back-to-back Tour Challenge titles for Team Brad Jacobs.

The local rink, which includes third Marc Kennedy, second E.J. Harnden, and lead Ryan Harnden along with Jacobs at skip, won the latest Grand Slam of Curling event, which wrapped up Sunday evening in Picou County, NS.

Jacobs beat Brad Gushue of St. John’s, Nfld. 6-4 in Sunday’s final.

Trailing by a pair in the seventh end, Jacobs hit a runback that removed the lone Gushue rock in the house and gave Jacobs three in the end to take 5-4 lead.

Jacobs said the team was planning to try to get three in the end all along.

“Marc and I talked about it and we were hoping that he was going to give us an angle that if we could make the runback, we could stick it for three and not take out anything else,” Jacobs said in an interview with Sportsnet. “We had that planned before (Gushue’s) shot was even made.”

Jacobs sealed the win with a steal of one in the eighth end.

“This was a heck of a week for us,” Jacobs said. “I’m proud of the guys. They hung in there all week.”

The Jacobs rink opened the event on Wednesday with a 9-4 loss to Edmonton’s Brendan Bottcher before reeling off three wins to cap the round robin with a 3-1 record.

Jacobs then beat Glenn Howard of Penetanguishene, Ont. 7-5 in quarterfinal action on Saturday.

Jacobs then beat Bottcher 7-3 in semifinal action on Saturday night to move into the final.

Gushue advanced to the final thanks to a 6-3 semifinal win over Calgary’s Kevin Koe.