Jacobs rink set for Brier opener

With a lot of tournament experience under their belt, Brad Jacobs and his team representing Northern Ontario at the 2020 Tim Hortons Brier will look to continue what’s been a solid season thus far.

The Jacobs rink, which includes third Marc Kennedy, second E.J. Harnden, and lead Ryan Harnden along with alternate Lee Toner, enters the nine-day event having won three Grand Slam of Curling events this season.

Team Jacobs earned a spot in the tournament thanks to an unbeaten run at provincials earlier this month.

Jacobs earned the right to represent northern Ontario thanks to a 7-3 win in the final over Mike Badiuk at provincials in New Liskeard.

The Jacobs rink opens the tournament on Saturday night against Team Alberta, skipped by Edmonton’s Brendan Bottcher.

Team Jacobs returns to action on Sunday for a pair of games, facing P.E.I.’s Bryan Cochrane in the morning draw and Manitoba’s Jason Gunnlaugson in the evening draw.

The tournament features 16 teams divided into two pools. After five days of action, the top four teams in each pool move on to the Championship Pool.

The Championship Pool will see the remaining eight teams play four more games and the top four teams at the conclusion moving on to the playoff round, which begins on Saturday.

The Page Playoff games are set for March 7 with semifinal action the next day. The tournament final is set for 7 p.m. on March 8.