Draw #8: More observations

The Danes are curling up a storm against the Swiss, stealing two in the third, stealing one more in the fourth, and in good position to steal or force only one in the fifth. And Korea had a second chance for a big end: hit and stick for FIVE, which they made to lead the Czechs. The crowd loved it.

Finally, Ulsrud and Norway were able to score two with the hammer and tie up their game against France. Canada blanked the fifth, with the US leading 3-2. And even though Denmark looked once again to have an advantage over Switzerland, the Swiss scored two and trail in their game 5-4.

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As I had expected, the Norway-France game is close. What I hadn't expected was how close/exciting the other three games would be. It looks to me as if the US, and especially skip Fenson, are really playing well against Canada. And while the Swiss have caught up to the Danes, Denmark is still giving them a good run. But probably the biggest surprise is the consistently surprising play by Korea, who stole one in the 6th to lead the Czechs 7-4.

Stoughton has essentially been forced to blank the last three ends. In the 7th, he faced an open house, so he did his "patented" spinarama delivery, much to the delight of the crowd. Meanwhile, Korea forced Czech to take only one and still leads; Denmark took one against Switzerland; and France deuced (if that's a curling verb) against Norway, a team that is still struggling relative to ex ante expectations.

Overall, I must acknowledge and compliment Fenson and the US team. They are playing at the same high level we have seen from them at times in the past, and they seem to be giving Canada fits.