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MONTREAL -- Rachel Homan and Team Canada have served notice theyre ready to defend their title at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. The defending champions grabbed the early lead and held on for a 9-6 win in nine ends over Quebecs Allison Ross on Sunday to emerge from the second day of play at the Maurice Richard Arena as the lone team yet to lose a match. "Its where I hoped wed be," said 24-year-old Homan (3-0). "You never know whats going to happen, but the teams playing really well. Weve just got to keep rolling." With previous victories of 8-3 over Manitoba and 9-3 over Ontario, both in eight ends, they have piled up points against some highly-regarded teams without yet having to go the full 10 ends. But Homan and the team were most concerned about giving up three to Quebec (0-4) in the second, which drew a roar from the 2,281 in the seats. "We gave up three in two, but thats alright -- mistakes will happen," said Homan. "Were learning the ice and different draws will be different weights." "I underthrew two halfway hits and that didnt turn out well and then Rachel threw one we thought was good but it sailed off," said Team Canada third Emma Miskew. "We got tricked a little on either the speed or the weight. "We didnt throw any more finesse shots after that because it tricked us a little." The evening draws saw two matches go to extra ends as both New Brunswick and P.E.I. pulled off victories. New Brunswicks Andrea Crawford (2-1) scored a single in the 11th end to take a 4-3 win over British Columbias 22-year-old skip Kesa Van Osch (1-3). And Kim Dolan (1-2) of P.E.I got her first victory of the tournament, 7-6 over Quebec in 11 ends. In the other late draws, Newfoundlands Heather Strong (3-1) edged Yukons Sarah Koltun (1-2) 6-5. Koltun scored singles in the ninth and 10th ends but fell short of the comeback. And Albertas Val Sweeting (3-1) scored three in the sixth end en route to a 5-4 victory over Nova Scotias Heather Smith (1-2). The afternoon draw saw some wild finishes. Stefanie Lawton (2-1) of Saskatchewan tied her game up with two in the ninth and then stole two in the 10th to win 8-6 over Sweeting. "Tied up coming home, without hammer, we know what we have to do," said Lawton, whose side gave up two in the 10th to lose 5-4 to Manitoba in the morning draw. "We have to put up two guards and get one on the button. "We got away with one when they kissed the guard and bit and I was able to put another on top of that and put the pressure on them. Theres going to be lots of games that will be battles. You just have to keep plugging away." Another cliffhanger saw Manitobas Chelsea Carey (2-1) get the point she needed in the 10th to defeat the B.C. side 7-6. And Ontarios Allison Flaxey (1-2) scored two in the 10th and a steal of one in an extra end to down Newfoundland by 8-7. Homan won last years Scotties as skip of Team Ontario, beating Jennifer Jones Winnipeg rink in the final. Jones isnt at this years tournament, having won an ultra-competitive qualifying tournament to represent Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Other top teams bowed out in their provincial championships, some citing mental fatigue from trying to make the Olympic team. But Homans side was spared that because they qualified automatically for the Scotties as the defending champions. "That definitely helped us," said Miskew. "Theres a lot of new faces here, but its nice to see a lot of young teams here." "We definitely have room to improve. We had a bad end but we were able to bounce back, so that was important for us. It seems every game you get a little better and thats our goal." Team Canada is part of the youth movement. Homan and Miskew are both 24, while second Alison Kreviazuk is 25. Theyve been playing together since they were young kids. Lead Lisa Weagle, 28, joined them later. Building a big lead in the morning draw against Ontario allowed them to give some playing time to their alternate, Stephanie LeDrew, who substituted for Weagle for the final two ends. "Its good to have her throw some shots and see the lines," Homan said of LeDrew. "You never know during a week if youre going to have to use her or not. "Hopefully not. Hopefully shell just be there to cheer us on, but its good to get her in early." LeDrew normally plays for Hollie Nicols Toronto rink, but she was brought in as an alternate by Homan for last years Scotties in Kingston, Ont., as well as for the 2013 womens world championship in Riga, Latvia. She got into three matches last year. "I know what it is to be prepared to jump in at a moments notice," said LeDrew. "I actually went for a jog around the arena in the sixth end to be prepared to go in the seventh, so I was warmed up and ready to rock." LeDrew said it is usually a team decision to get the alternate some playing time. "It tends to be on the ice between ends, if they have a big lead going," she said. "They see it as a good opportunity to throw the alternate in. "They also want to get me in because I have to play in two games, for at least one end in each game, in order to be eligible for the jewelry (prizes) at the end of the week -- the diamonds. So theyre being good to me." The match also pitted sister against sister as Alison Kreviazuk faced Lynn Kreviazuk, the Ontario second. "Actually, I havent played against Lynn in a few years, so this was kind of a first for me," Alison Kreviazuk said of her 22-year-old sister. "We get along great, so theres nothing negative. "They played really well, they just had a few bad breaks. I know shell pick it up for the next one." The morning draw saw more one-sided wins as Yukon downed P.E.I. by 10-3 in eight ends. Nova Scotia, beat New Brunswick by 12-2, also in eight ends. 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This is not a bad thing. The four-month buildup to the first major helps people in cold-weather states dream of spring as they shovel out from the latest snow storm. The serene pictures of Augusta National make golf addicts hear the roars of the crowd in their head and help them reminisce about previous Masters memories. The buildup will be especially big for the No. 1 player in the world. Rory McIlroy will enter Augusta as the holder of the Open Championship and PGA Championship titles. He is also one Masters win from completing the career grand slam. While people debate McIlroys chances, a player that once dominated Augusta comes back from injury. Four-time Masters champion Tiger Woods was held to nine events, including his unofficial one in December, in 2014. Woods seemed to be healthy at his event at Isleworth, but his short-game was awful. He has said that he will tweak his schedule a little with the WGC- Cadillac Match Play Championship moving to Apr. 29-May 3 from its traditional February date. No one knows what that tweak will entail since Woods keeps his schedule as close to his vest as the secret service does with the Presidents schedule. Another player returning from a long layoff will be Dustin Johnson. He took a leave of absence, or was suspended, depending on what you believe. Regardless, Johnson will return for his first tournament action since he missed the cut at the Canadian Open last July. Johnson and fiancee Paulina Gretzky are expecting their first child in the near future as well. He has said he wont play until after their son is born. According to reports, Johnson will play the Farmers Insurance Open, February 5-8. That likely is also the first PGA Tour event at which Woods will play, while McIlroy will make his first European Tour start of 2015 in Abu Dhabi, but he hasnt announced his PGA Tour debut yet. Those three will garner plenty of attention once they tee it up. What other players are we interested in for 2015? To start off, Mr. Almost from 2014 - Rickie Fowler. He finished in the top- five at all four majors last year and had six top-five finishes overall. Fowler is still searching for his first victory since his only tour title at the 2012 Wells Fargo Championship. Next are a pair of wily veterans - Jim Furyk and Phil Mickelson. Furyk has blown eight 54-hole leads in a row, including a pair last year. He hasnt won since the 2010 Tour Championship. Can he win again? Or will he have to wait five years until joining the Champions Tour before he wins his next title? Mickelson is coming off arguably the worst season of his career.dddddddddddd. He didnt have a top-10 finish on the PGA Tour until the PGA Championship. Mickelson was winless for the fourth time since he turned pro in 1992. In the seasons that followed his first three winless years, Mickelson combined for eight wins, including his 2004 Masters victory. History says Mickelson will bounce back and win this year. As for the European Tour, what will we see from Ian Poulter and was Victor Dubuisson just a flash in the pan? Poulter had just three top-10 finishes in 14 starts and had a subpar Ryder Cup, an event which he had dominated in the past. Dubuisson had four runner-up finishes after earning his lone tour win in 2013. The Frenchman was 2-0-1 in his first Ryder Cup. Will he keep that momentum going into 2015? The LPGA continues to grow after some down years and four of the biggest names in the sport are ranked in the top-six in the world rankings. Inbee Park, Lydia Ko and Stacy Lewis are 1-2-3 in the rankings and all three are coming off three-win seasons. Lewis is the oldest of the group as she will turn 30-years-old in February. The trio should continue to wrack up victories for years to come. World No. 6 Michelle Wie, the reigning U.S. Womens Open champion, won twice last year for her first wins since 2010. Wie is the biggest name in the game, and if she keeps winning, the LPGA will gain even more appeal. The Solheim Cup is this September and with six players ranked in the top-20 in the world, to just three for the Europeans, the United States team will be the favorite on paper. But that was the case in 2013, when the Europeans rolled to an 18-10 win in Colorado. That was their first-ever win in the U.S. in the Solheim Cup and it marked the first time the Europeans ever won back-to-back cups. Those are a few of the things well be watching in 2015. Now it is time to tee it up and enjoy the action. MINI-TIDBITS - The field at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions includes 34 players that have combined for 100 PGA Tour titles, including six major championships, and has six members of the 2014 United States Ryder Cup squad that lost in Europe. - One non-golf thought for the week, the passing of ESPNs Stuart Scott hit home for many, including myself. My father is in his third battle with cancer and it pains me to see what he is dealing with on a daily basis. Scott dealt with much of the same, and maybe worse, yet was able to be strong for his family, his coworkers and his viewers. Rest in peace, Stuart, you will be missed by many. Wholesale NFL Autographed Jerseys Wholesale NFL Gear Cheap NFL Black Jerseys Wholesale Black NFL Jerseys Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Online Cheap Jerseys 2020 ' ' '