Estevan's Brent Gedak got a good start to the 2018 SaskTel Tankard in the opening draw, earning a 5-1 win over Langenberg's Jeff Hartung rink.
With a fairly defensive first opening ends and no one making mistakes, Hartung faced a draw to the eight foot to count one and surrender the hammer in the eighth end. But Hartung's draw was too heavy and Gedak had three rocks in the rings, giving him a 5-1 lead. Hartung conceded after that.
The game went down to the wire, Gedak said afterwards.
“Fortunately we got lucky and we were able to steal a few but for the most part it was a really close game,” he said.
The ice was “great, with lots of curl,” Gedak added. “It was nice to get that under our belt.”
Both teams were trying to get a feel for the ice early, he said.
“We're prepared for a fairly simple game to start with and keep it close and make sure we're prepared for the tougher shots later on,” he said.
In the other opening draw matches, Steve Laycock defeated Aaron Shutra 8-3 after 5 ends, Jason Jacobson defeated Ryan Deis 7-3 and Brady Kendel upset Josh Heidt 3-2, scoring a pair in the tenth end.
Gedak's next match is Thursday at 9 a.m. against Kendel. The Tankard continues through till Sunday.
