How are curling teams ranked when tied?
A · Advanced · Competition · 4 of 5After the round robin, teams rank by win-loss record. Two tied teams split by their head-to-head game; three or more by the games among them. Any tie left goes to the draw shot challenge, the average of a team's last stone draws with the worst one or two left out. The lower average ranks higher.
How it works
- First: win-loss record.
- Two tied: the winner of their game ranks higher.
- Three or more: the record among the tied teams.
- Still tied: the draw shot challenge (DSC).
- DSC: the average of a team's round-robin LSD stones.
- Dropped: the worst result if 11 or fewer stones count; the worst two if more.
- DSC tie: the best non-equal LSD, then the World Curling ranking.
- During the round robin: teams with the same record are shown equal, by three-letter code.
The glossary has the round robin ranking, the Draw Shot Challenge, the Last Stone Draw, the draw, the button and the measurement.
Tricky cases
Why do LSDs matter even in games a team wins?
Every round-robin LSD feeds the DSC, which may decide its ranking.
A team pulls out mid-event. What happens to its results?
Played games keep their results and later games are forfeits.
A team is disqualified. What happens to its results?
All its results are removed and it is listed last.
What is the maximum LSD distance?
199.6 cm, given to stones outside the house.
Why the rule exists
Using the last stone draws breaks ties without extra games. Dropping the worst throw stops one bad stone from deciding a team's place.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| One group | Record, head-to-head, then DSC | WC C9 (b) |
| Several groups | Merged ranking by DSC | WC C9 (c) |
| Play-offs | Final ranking from the play-off system | WC C9 (d) |
From the rule book
World Curling, The Rules of Curling and Rules of Competition (1 September 2026), rules C8 (c) and C9. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: World Curling's rules, reviewed every year.