Basics of Curling Strategy

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A quick introduction to the basics of curling strategy! This video covers everything a first-time skip needs to know to call a game, and gives insight into the general strategies used by both teams when trying to put together an end. If you've never had a lesson in curling strategy before, this is the video for you.
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[@sampson028]

factors determining strategy for an end: "Do I want to buy drinks?"
Dead haha.

[@dandeliondown7920]

Just for fun, here is a curling strategy lesson I learned many years ago while watching the Tournament of Hearts on television:
Colleen Jones was skip for Nova Scotia. I don't recall her third's name, but let's just call her Mary. Mary was due to throw next. Their team disagreed about what shot to play. Colleen called a time-out and went to talk to the Nova Scotia coach (in those days, the coaches could not come onto the ice). Colleen explained the argument to the coach, and then the coach asked, "What shot does Mary want to play?" Colleen explained Mary's preference. The coach said, "Then that's the shot you should play, because Mary has to throw the rock." Colleen immediately replied, "Right!!!"
(Former World and Canadian champion Don Duguid was commentating on television, and he could have had kittens when he heard that.)

[@jamiehackl1231]

Thank you for making this video. Very helpful.

[@kriskrystyniak5643]

Great, simple intro to strategy.

[@lindayorke8108]

Love your videos.

[@ThreePhaseHigh]

So why does the thrower have a broom or stick in their hand? They never seem to use it.

[@102brick]

Second, thanks for the tutorial.

[@ThreePhaseHigh]

So why does the thrower have a stick or whatever you call it he or she never seems to use it

[@stephencrockett7203]

Hi. This is my second season of curling. Last year and this year my club encouraged me to lead and skip novice curlers in two of the weekly ladders in order to help expand the numbers of teams. Of course, I'm at a bit of a disadvantage in terms of my knowledge of curling strategy and the limitations of the shots my teammates can make.
I see that most of the experienced teams have their first throw to the top eight on the right and/or left side of the house regardless of whether they have the hammer. What should be my counter strategy in the first few ends and later on when (lol) I might be playing from behind or just barely hanging on in the score?

[@RM-mz4zd]

Hi Stephen!
I know I'm not the posting account, but maybe I can help you out (even though your comment is a year old, lol). Ultimately, this does depend on the strengths and weaknesses of your team. If your team is very good at hitting, you may be better off keeping the games more open (having your first rock go into the house and playing a hit game). What this can do is reduce the score, and eliminate the possibility for big ends, which is what you're more than likely seeing in these situations with more experienced teams.
Alternatively, if you find your team is better off with a draw/guard game, having the house junked up with a lot of rocks in play can benefit you, as long as you have a shot to sit at least one (hopefully more) on your last rock. The downside to this is that it could result in you playing a very difficult draw, runback, tap-back, double takeout, etc on your last shot.
If I were to suggest a counter strategy in the first few ends, I would keep it fairly clean, but recognizing when to take a risk is very important. Oftentimes, I see games stay pretty clean (in that hit-game mentality), until one team makes one or two misses and allows the team that did not make any misses to apply pressure with multiple rocks in play.
Ultimately, if you have a game where you are down in score, sometimes you need to take the risk to score that big 2-4 points to get yourself back into the game, and if that doesn't end up happening, you get to go grab drinks early! lol.
I hope this little bit of rambling from a guy who loves the sport may have helped one year later, and I hope your skipping journey has been fun!

[@hemmojito]

Wow thank you. So simple and logical. I feel like after a flu shot. You know a simple but very effective way to prevent sickness. And this video was a simple but effective way to prevent confusion watching Curling. Thanks again!
Cheers mate

[@nothumbs12gaming79]

Thanks for the video, but I now know less than I did before the video., lol

[@580guru]

Thanks for the video! My wife & I just started watching curling in ernest this Olympics 🤓

[@texkillerson6681]

The explanation was rather too rapid for me to understand much. Thanks for trying, though; much appreciated.

[@zeeskyte]

I just kept hitting pause, so I could think.

[@munyatakavarasha5585]

Third, curling rhymes with hurling

[@kral_geridondu]

I don't understand shit from this

[@rivertodd3051]

Try explaining the issue why should I know what a fucking hammer is...

[@eXGaming4u]

You literally explained nothing. Grrrr

[@franklinmckenzie8856]

I disagree. I learn a few things from this video.

[@flemingcourt]

Some people are better students than others.