TCA Goldline Men’s Championships

Event Registration – Open Late October

Interested in participating in this event? Submit the form below and someone from our team will be in touch to confirm your submission.

About

The 2023 Goldline is scheduled for Jan 7-14, 2023 and we hope to see you all out!

The TCA Goldline Men’s Championships are open to all club-level Men’s teams from across the GTA and beyond, and attracts teams of all calibre. This event is a great way to enjoy friendly competition and make many new curling friends.

The TCA Goldline Mens Championship has 5 Divisions encompassing experience (Novice or Open) and age (Senior, Master, Grandmaster). The games are played over one week at many TCA Curling Centres.

Format/Rules

2022-2023 Rules

The Toronto Curling Association’s Goldline Men’s Curling Championships are for club level teams composed of male curlers in the Toronto area clubs that have been approved to participate.

• Each team shall consist of four players from the same club who must be active members and participate in club draw(s).

• Rental league players are eligible and encouraged to participate.

• Teams from a major league are ineligible unless members of the same home club, including spares. 

• Participants may not play on any other team as regular players within their division. Teams and/or individuals may, however, play in more than one division (Open and Master/Grandmaster or Senior and Master/Grandmaster).

• Teams must remain unchanged in personnel in all events throughout the competition except as provided in “spares.”

The Canadian Curling Association rules apply.

Note:

All entries must be made through the TCA website at www.TorontoCurling.com. An e-mail notification will be sent to confirm the entry. All teams registered will be posted on the TCA website.

Some of the clubs used for the TCA Goldline Men’s Championships have dress codes.    Please call the club directly if you need clarification.    

Players are also instructed to follow any club specific COVID restrictions.

Team Registration:

All skips are required to indicate the four regular members of the team on the registration form prior to their first game. By signing the form they also acknowledge that the rules unique to this competition have been read and are fully understood.

General Eligibility: Age

Open                      :  19 years of age and over as of December 31, 2022

Novice                    :  19 years of age and over as of December 31, 2022

Senior                    :  50 years of age and over as of December 31, 2022

Master                   :  60 years of age and over as of December 31, 2022

Grandmaster          :  70 years of age and over as of December 31, 2022

General Eligibility

The TCA Goldline Men’s Championships Committee welcomes all adult male curlers to enter the Championships, including competitive / elite curlers. However, as the Championships is intended for club-level teams, we ask that all teams meet the spirit of club-level eligibility and consist of players playing in positions they would normally play during club-level Men’s competition.

For divisions – Open, Senior, Master and Grandmaster:

• lower than they would normally play during club-level Men’s competition. That is, a Skip may not play Second or Lead and a Vice may not play Lead. Each club’s Manager is responsible for adherence to this rule. This rule does not apply to the Novice division.

• Only 2 members of a main event winning team in any division may play together the following year in that division. The Grandmasters division is exempt from this rule.   This is a one-year restriction. (This rule will not apply to the 2023 event.)  

For Novice divisions:

• Novice teams shall have a total, aggregate number of years of curling experience of 20 years or less (including any youth curling experience). For example, four players of five years’ experience each would qualify.

Specific Ineligibility: Front End (This rule will not apply to 2023 event.)

Players who meet any of the following criteria shall be ineligible to play front end in divisions – Open, Senior, Master and Grandmaster:

• Anyone who has thrown Skip or Vice rocks in the main event final game within a division of the Men’sTCA Championships during the last season. A spare is exempt from this rule.

• Anyone who has thrown Skip and Vice rocks in the Provincials for the Men’s, Curling Club Championship, Senior Men’s or Master Men’s competitions in Ontario, or in a similar competition in any other jurisdiction, during the last season. Grandmasters division is exempt from this rule.

Team Eligibility:

A team that does not have three players ready to start the game at the time designated by the draw shall be assessed a penalty of one point and one end shall be considered played for every 10 minutes the start of the game is delayed. When the game does start, the penalty for playing with three men may also apply (see below). The offending team will throw first.

If after a 30-minute delay, one team does not have three players, then that team shall lose the game by default.

3-Person Teams:

The committee strongly discourages the use of three person teams.  However, it does appreciate that three-person teams are allowed in club play; therefore, every team shall be allowed to play only one game with three players without penalty. If the fourth player is expected to arrive, the offending skip must inform the opposing skip what position the missing player will play when he arrives. He will be allowed to enter the game prior to the completion of the fourth end without penalty. After the completion of the fourth end, the game is considered to have been played with three players; however the fourth player may still participate in the remaining ends of the game.

For the second offence and each subsequent game if a team starts the game with three players, the following penalty will be assessed:

• One end is considered played.

• The non-offending team will be awarded two points.

• The offending team will throw the first rock. 

• The team will throw 3-3-2.

For the second offence and each subsequent game, if the fourth player is expected to arrive but does not arrive before the completion of the fourth end, he may not enter the game.

The host club umpire will inform the Drawmaster or the Umpire-in-Chief of any offenses under “Three Person Teams”. Repeat offenses may result in the disqualification of the offending team.

Teams advancing to games on the closing day of the Championships must start with four players meeting all eligibility rules outlined herein.

Spares:

1. All teams must have two original members to be legal.

2. Spares are permitted in any game on notification to and approval of the host club umpire before commencing the game.

3. A member of the team that was listed on the registration form on the opening day must throw the final two rocks of each end.However, in the absence of the original skip, a spare shall be allowed to call the game.

4. The spare shall be from the same club as the team.

5. The spare may have been a member of another team in the current year of the championship provided that said team was eliminated in the third game of the Open, Senior, Master or Grandmastercompetitions. Exception: A Master or Grandmastermay spare in the Open or Senior division at any time.

6. Every spare must qualify as to rating under “General Eligibility” and age.

7. A spare may play in any position. The exception is point 3.

8. He is allowed to spare for multiple teams during the entire championship.

9. A team may use up to a maximum of six players for the duration of the competition: four regulars and two spares. If a team uses a seventh player, they will be disqualified.

Rescheduling Games:

All games shall be played as scheduled except in the case of a weather-related problem or mechanical problem at the hosting club.

The umpire may postpone or delay the starting time for any game with the authorization of the umpire-in-chief for extenuating and impartial reasons.

General:

The Chairman of the TCA Goldline Men’s Championships Committee shall appoint the umpire-in-chief and an umpire shall be appointed at each club.

All games shall be eight ends including semi-finals and finals. Teams mathematically eliminated from a game must concede.

On Opening Saturday, ties will be broken by a draw to the button by any member of the team with sweeping allowed for the throwing team only. Ties in all other games will be broken by a full extra end(s).

The use of a curling “stick” is permitted.

Practice is not permitted prior to the game.

The flip of a coin will determine which team has the choice of hammer or rock colour.

Notices relating to the championship shall be sent to the sponsoring clubs. These notices shall be considered sufficient notification to the participants.

In the case of an emergency breakdown occurring at a club during the playing of the championships, whichever team has the highest score after the completion of six ends of the eight-end game shall be, at the discretion of the umpire, declared the winner.

Should the Umpire-in-Chief declare a team “disqualified” during the Championships, only the previous game’s result will be reversed.

Games in these championships take precedence over league games.  Teams have the right to ask their league executives to give them every opportunity to reschedule conflicting league games.

Withdrawals will be accepted up to 48 hours before the Championships commences with no punitive measures.

If a team defaults both of their first two scheduled games, they will be ineligible to compete in any further games in the competition.

Teams participating in the Thursday games must declare to the umpire, prior to the start of play, if they are available to participate in the remainder of the championships. If they are not available, they will forfeit the game and will receive the non-winners prize. The non-offending team will advance. If a team fails to declare their intent, all members of the team will be disqualified from play for two years and will forfeit any prize eligibility in the current year.

A skip may list a spare on the score card for the final game for the purposes of recording in the TCA Goldline Men’s Championships record and, on the trophy, and/or plaque should they be the winner

Curler’s Code of Ethics

• I will play the game with the spirit of good sportsmanship.

• I will conduct myself in an honorable manner both on and off the ice.

• I will never knowingly break a rule, but if I do, I will divulge the breach.

• I will take no action that could be interpreted as an attempt to intimidate or demean my opponents, teammates or officials.

• I will interpret the rules in an impartial manner, always keeping in mind that the purpose of the rules is to ensure that the game is played in an orderly and fair manner.

• I will humbly accept any penalty, that the governing body at any level of curling deems appropriate, if I am found in violation of the code of ethics or rules of the game.

Fair Play

• Fair play begins with the strict observance of the written rule: however, in most cases, fair play involves something more than even failing observance of the written rule.  The observance of the spirit of the rules, whether written or unwritten, is important. 

• Fair play results from measuring up one’s own moral standards while engaged in competition.

• Fair play is consistent demonstration of respect for teammates and opponents, whether they are winning or losing.

• Fair play is consistent demonstration of respect for officials, an acceptance of their decision and a steadfast spirit of collaboration with them.

• Sportsmanlike behavior should be demonstrated both on and off the ice.  This includes modesty in victory and composure in defeat.

Stay tuned for more information on the format and rules.

Registration 

Please stay tuned for more information.

TCA Facility Fee: In order to support our member clubs, the TCA Facility Fee is included in each team’s entry fee with all monies going directly back to the host clubs.

Draw/Game Times

Open and Seniors

Saturday 9 or 11 draw and 1 and 3 draw

Monday 7 or 9

Tuesday 7 or 9

Thursday 7 or 9

Saturday Finals 9am

Masters and Grandmasters 

Monday 1pm

Tuesday 1pm

Wednesday 1pm

Thursday 1pm

Friday Finals 9am

Live Scores

Come back during the event to see the live scoring!

History

The TCA Men’s Championships is one of the world’s oldest continuous curling event. The winners of the first Championship was the Rennie Rink, from the Caledonia Curling club, in 1896.  Prior to 1896, there was a city competition, but the format was different. At that time, 16 players threw 16 rocks, and there was no championship. The game was played by eight man teams throwing one rock each.  As time went on the game changed and by the mid 1800’s, the most popular format of play was the Single Rink. A championship was proposed in 1895 and the first Single Rink Championship of Toronto was held in January of 1896. They played twenty-two ends on natural ice with straw brooms. The good news was you couldn’t sweep a rock until it reached the middle line. Hiram Walker sponsored the event in those early years before passing the torch to the Canada Life Assurance Company in 1906. Every January for the next eighty years, curlers assembled in clubs across the city to compete for the right to call themselves “Canada Life Champions.”

From 1994 -1997, the Investors Group sponsored the event, and in 1998 a determined group of curlers from the Weston Golf & Country Club kept the tradition alive. Brick Brewing stepped in as sponsor from 1999-2001. From 2002 until 2009 Johnson Controls assumed sponsorship of this great event, under the banner of TCA Energizer Men’s Bonspiel. In 2010, the TCA was pleased to welcome Goldline Curling Supplies as sponsor of this great event.

Past Champions

Supporting Sponsors

If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of this event, please contact Bill Baker at men@torontocurling.com.

Contact Us

Chair: Bill Baker at men@torontocurling.com

Drawmaster: John Leermakers at reg.tca@gmail.com

General Inquiries: men@torontocurling.com

Past Champions 2006-2020

TCA-Mens-Past-Winners-2006-2020