Epping Wins KW Fall Classic
John Epping (Sudbury, Ontario) claimed victory at the KW Fall Classic, defeating Riku Yanagisawa (Karuizawa, JPN) 4-3 in an extra end at the K-W Granite Club in Waterloo..
Epping, alongside teammates Jake Horgan at third, Tanner Horgan, and Ian McMillan on the front end, secured the 22.5 world ranking points for first place, while Yanagisawa took home 16.5 world ranking points for their runner-up finish.
Epping started with the hammer, blanking the first three ends before scoring two in the fourth end to take an early lead. After another blank end, Epping stole the sixth end. Yanagisawa got on the scoreboard with 2 points in the seventh end, followed by a steal in the eighth to tie the game. Epping rebounded with a single point in the extra end, sealing their 4-3 win.
In the semifinals, Epping beat Woodstock's Mark Kean 9-4, while Yanagisawa overcame Guelph's Jayden King 7-1. King and Kean each received 12.75 ranking points for their semifinal finishes. In the quarterfinals, Yanagisawa edged out Kohsuke Hirata of Kitami, Japan, 7-6, King defeated Little Current's Jordan Chandler 10-5, Kean overcame Toronto's Rob Ainsley 7-2, and Epping beat Scott Dunnam of Philadelphia, 6-1.
Epping finished the 19-team triple knockout qualifying round with a perfect 3-0 record, advancing through the A-event bracket. Epping defeated Daniel Hocevar (Toronto, ON) 6-4 in the opener, followed by an 8-3 win over Alex Champ (Toronto, ON), and a 7-4 victory against Hirata in their final qualifying match.
Epping, alongside teammates Jake Horgan at third, Tanner Horgan, and Ian McMillan on the front end, secured the 22.5 world ranking points for first place, while Yanagisawa took home 16.5 world ranking points for their runner-up finish.
Epping started with the hammer, blanking the first three ends before scoring two in the fourth end to take an early lead. After another blank end, Epping stole the sixth end. Yanagisawa got on the scoreboard with 2 points in the seventh end, followed by a steal in the eighth to tie the game. Epping rebounded with a single point in the extra end, sealing their 4-3 win.
In the semifinals, Epping beat Woodstock's Mark Kean 9-4, while Yanagisawa overcame Guelph's Jayden King 7-1. King and Kean each received 12.75 ranking points for their semifinal finishes. In the quarterfinals, Yanagisawa edged out Kohsuke Hirata of Kitami, Japan, 7-6, King defeated Little Current's Jordan Chandler 10-5, Kean overcame Toronto's Rob Ainsley 7-2, and Epping beat Scott Dunnam of Philadelphia, 6-1.
Epping finished the 19-team triple knockout qualifying round with a perfect 3-0 record, advancing through the A-event bracket. Epping defeated Daniel Hocevar (Toronto, ON) 6-4 in the opener, followed by an 8-3 win over Alex Champ (Toronto, ON), and a 7-4 victory against Hirata in their final qualifying match.