Quebec qualifies for playoffs at Brier with upset win over Alberta

KAMLOOPS, B.C. – Jean-Michel Menard led Quebec to an upset 7-5 win over Alberta’s Kevin Koe on Friday at the Canadian men’s curling championship.

Coupled with a loss by Saskatchewan’s Steve Laycock, Menard locked up the fourth and final playoff seed at the Tim Hortons Brier and will play Manitoba’s Jeff Stoughton in the 3-4 Page Playoff game Saturday.

Koe was solid all week but struggled with weight and accuracy in the round-robin finale.

Laycock scored three in the eighth end of his game against James Grattan, but New Brunswick rebounded with a deuce in the ninth and three more points in the 10th end for a 9-7 win.

Alberta, Manitoba and B.C.’s John Morris all finished at 9-2. B.C. will play Alberta in the 1-2 Page Playoff game Friday night.

In other early games, Prince Edward Island’s Eddie MacKenzie (4-7) outscored Jamie Koe (3-8) of Northwest Territories/Yukon 11-7. Greg Balsdon (5-6) of Ontario capped his Brier debut with a 9-6 win over Jamie Murphy’s winless Nova Scotia (0-11) team.