What is it?
The No-Tick Rule protects center guards early in an end. A center guard is a stone placed in the middle of the ice to block or protect other stones. If a stone touching the center line in the Free Guard Zone (FGZ) is moved before the sixth stone of the end, the team that didn’t break the rule can reset the stones.
Why it matters / Why we’re doing it
Curling Canada has introduced it into the Rules of Play that our league follows. They did this to:
- Keep center guards in play longer
- Encourage more strategic shot-making
- Make the game more exciting and tactical
When it applies
- Only before the sixth stone of the end
- Only if the moved stone was touching the center line in the FGZ
If the rule is broken
The non-offending team can choose to:
- Remove the delivered stone and reset the moved stones
- Or leave all stones where they ended up
