The P&H Masters in Medicine Hat is a test of whether former world No. 1 teams Bruce Mouat and Rachel Homan can shake off early-season rust after both went 1-3 at the GSOC Invitational and missed the playoffs. With two weeks of practice but no competitive games in between, they don’t need to win the event—but they do need to show progress. Meanwhile, rising teams Serena Gray-Withers and Marco Hoesli will look to build on promising starts.

By the Numbers
  • Mouat and Homan each finished 1-3 at the GSOC Invitational.
  • Homan’s playoff streak ended at 14 events.
  • Hoelsi’s team has gone 40-17 across eight events this season and climbed to No. 5 in the world rankings.
  • Under the revised scoring system, a regulation win earns 3 points; a shootout win, 2; a shootout loss with the hammer, 1; and a shootout loss without it, 0.
Yes, But

The Invitational’s poor results could reflect early-season rust: Mouat had played only one tournament since August, while it was Homan’s first competitive women’s fours action of the season. But if their shot-making doesn’t improve, the concern that other teams have caught up will grow. Hoesli’s breakout semifinal run is encouraging, though the team still needs to show it can perform against a deeper field consistently.

State of Play
  • The Masters introduces revised shootout points after a controversial round-robin game between Brendan Bottcher and Matt Dunstone.
  • Gray-Withers makes her Grand Slam debut with a team that has already won the Saville Shootout this season.
  • Key matchups include Homan’s rivals Kerri Einarson and Alina Paetz, Mouat against Olympic champion Brad Jacobs, and Dunstone against Danny Casper.
What’s Next

Play begins Nov. 3, with the tournament running through Championship Sunday. Mouat and Homan’s performance will show whether the Invitational was merely a slow start or a sign that the competitive balance is shifting.

Bottom Line

The Masters is an early-season reality check: Mouat and Homan need to deliver sharper curling, while challengers like Gray-Withers and Hoesli have a chance to prove they belong among the tour’s top teams.