By Jonathan Brazeau
The stage is now set for the AMJ Masters Tier 2, with the Grand Slam of Curling announcing Tuesday the draw schedule for the tournament.
The action will take place at the St. Thomas Curling Club, Sept. 24-27, in St. Thomas, Ont. Both men’s and women’s finals will be played alongside the Tier 1 finals Sept. 28 at the Western Fair Sports Centre in London, Ont. Streaming for the Tier 2 finals will be available at thegrandslamofcurling.com.
The Tier 2 division features the next group of teams from World Curling’s rankings and regional invites.
Eight different countries will be represented in the Tier 2, with teams from Canada, Czechia, Denmark, Japan, Scotland, South Korea, Switzerland, and the United States.
Three teams — Czechia’s Team Klima, Denmark’s Team Dupont, and Scotland’s Team Morrison — already have their tickets punched for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina, with an early Olympic preview between Dupont and Morrison in pool play.
One of the marquee men’s matchups in round-robin play will be Team Shuster versus Team Koe as both clubs aim to return to the top flight. Shuster defeated Koe in the semifinals of the 2018 Winter Olympics en route to capturing gold.
Each team will play four round-robin games: three against teams within their pool and one crossover game. Teams from Pool A will face teams from Pool C, and teams from Pool B will face teams from Pool D. Crossover games will be played Sept. 26, with the matchups determined based on the standings following the conclusion of pool play. The first-place team will cross over to play the fourth-place team, with the second-place team facing the third-place team, and vice versa.
The Grand Slam of Curling expanded its events this season, adding Tier 2 tournaments to the AMJ Masters and Canadian Open. The Tour Challenge, which has traditionally included a Tier 2 portion, will instead feature U25 and U15 tournaments.
That’s not all, as the AMJ Masters will also include the inaugural GSOC Wheelchair Curling Invitational. Round-robin play will take place at the KW Granite Club in Waterloo, Ont., with the medal games happening alongside the AMJ Masters Tier 1 and Tier 2 finals Sept. 28 at the Western Fair Sports Centre. Streaming for the medal games will be available at thegrandslamofcurling.com.
AMJ Masters Tier 2 draw schedule
| Date | Time (ET) | Draw | Sheet A | Sheet B | Sheet C | Sheet D | Sheet E | Sheet F |
Wednesday, Sept. 24 | 6:30 p.m. | 1 | Kitazawa vs. Artichuk | Henderson vs. Hürlimann | Cameron vs. MacMillan | Brown vs. Strouse | Carruthers vs. Mulima | Yamaguchi vs. Mooibroek |
Thursday, Sept. 25 | 8 a.m. | 2 | Morrison vs. Principi | B. Peterson vs. Dupont | Lawes vs. Inglis | Kang vs. T. Peterson | McDonald vs. Shuster | Koe vs. Maeda |
| 11:15 a.m. | 3 | Carruthers vs. Mooibroek | Yamaguchi vs. Mulima | Brunner vs. King | Casper vs. Klima | Waddell vs. Howard | Abe vs. Bryce | |
| 2:30 p.m. | 4 | McDonald vs. Maeda | Shuster vs. Koe | Kitazawa vs. Hürlimann | Henderson vs. Artichuk | Cameron vs. Stouse | Brown vs. MacMillan | |
| 5:45 p.m. | 5 | Waddell vs. Bryce | Abe vs. Howard | Morrison vs. Dupont | B. Peterson vs. Principi | Brunner vs. Klima | Casper vs. King | |
| 9 p.m. | 6 | Lawes vs. T. Peterson | Kang vs. Inglis | Carruthers vs. Yamaguchi | Mooibroek vs. Mulima | Kitazawa vs. Henderson | Hürlimann vs. Artichuk | |
Friday, Sept. 26 | 8 a.m. | 7 | Brunner vs. Casper | Klima vs. King | Cameron vs. Brown | Stouse vs. MacMillan | Waddell vs. Abe | Bryce vs. Howard |
| 11:15 a.m. | 8 | Morrison vs. B. Peterson | Dupont vs. Principi | Lawes vs. Kang | T. Peterson vs. Inglis | McDonald vs. Koe | Shuster vs. Maeda | |
| 2:30 p.m. | 9 | Crossover Games - TBD | ||||||
| 5:45 p.m. | 10 | Crossover Games - TBD | ||||||
| 9 p.m. | 11 | Crossover Games - TBD | ||||||
Saturday, Sept. 27 | 8:30 a.m. | 12 | Tiebreakers | |||||
| 12 p.m. | 13 | Men's Quarterfinals | ||||||
| 3:30 p.m. | 14 | Women's Quarterfinals | ||||||
| 7:30 p.m. | 15 | Men's and Women's Semifinals | ||||||
Sunday, Sept. 28 | 11:30 a.m. | 16 | Men's Final (Western Fair Sports Centre) | |||||
| 3:30 p.m. | 17 | Women's Final (Western Fair Sports Centre) | ||||||
AMJ Masters Tier 2 men's division
| Pool A | Pool B |
| Carruthers | Brunner |
| Yamaguchi | Casper |
| Mooibroek | Klima |
| Mulima | King |
| Pool C | Pool D |
| McDonald | Waddell |
| Shuster | Abe |
| Koe | Bryce |
| Maeda | Howard |
AMJ Masters Tier 2 women's division
| Pool A | Pool B |
| Kitazawa | Morrison |
| Henderson | B. Peterson |
| Hürlimann | Dupont |
| Artichuk | Principi |
| Pool C | Pool D |
| Cameron | Lawes |
| Brown | Kang |
| Strouse | T. Peterson |
| MacMillan | Inglis |
