News General News

Simmons stepping back from competitive curling

Two-time Brier champion Pat Simmons is stepping back from curling.

Winnipeg-based Team Simmons announced Monday they have decided to mutually part ways. Third Colton Lott is hanging up the brush for now as well while second Kyle Doering and lead Rob Gordon will continue playing.

Simmons, from Moose Jaw, Sask., represented his home province at the Brier five times before taking over for Blake MacDonald as vice skip on Kevin Koe’s team in Alberta. They finished runner-up at the Brier in 2012 and captured the Canadian men’s curling championship in 2014. After finishing fourth at the worlds, Koe left the club with Simmons, second Carter Rycroft and lead Nolan Thiessen staying together and adding John Morris in order to retain the Team Canada auto-berth back to the Brier.

Things didn’t quite work out with Morris at skip and he switched spots in the lineup with Simmons. The team soared and retained the Brier title. Simmons earned a bronze medal at the 2015 world championship.

The foursome returned to the 2016 Brier the following year as Team Canada again and just missed the playoffs finishing in fifth place with a 6-5 round-robin record. Team Simmons disbanded after the season with Morris returning to Jim Cotter’s crew in B.C. and Rycroft and Thiessen stepping back.

Simmons joined Brendan Bottcher’s Edmonton team for 2016-17 but only lasted half a season parting ways around the holiday break in December.

Lott, Doering and Gordon won the 2016 Canadian junior championship and world junior bronze medal with Matt Dunstone. The trio played with Jason Gunnlaugson last season and added Simmons to the mix for 2017-18.

The all-new Team Simmons competed in the Road to the Roar Canadian Olympic curling pre-trials in November, however, they did not advance and finished round-robin play with a 2-4 record. They made it to the final eight of the Manitoba Viterra Championship last month.

Team Simmons competed in three Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling tournaments during 2017-18 and qualified for the playoffs at the season-opening Tour Challenge Tier 1.