Takeout in curling

The shot out of the house

In curling there are two basic types of shot: placing stones and removing them. The takeout belongs to the second group. The player delivers the stone at high pace so that it hits an opposing stone and knocks it out of the house or out of play altogether. Stones that completely cross the back line behind the house or hit the side boundary are out of play.

The main variants

• Hit and stay: your stone hits the opponent's full on and comes to rest almost in its place. Ideal when you want to take the spot in the house yourself.
• Hit and roll: your stone hits slightly off-centre and then rolls to a chosen position, for example behind a guard.
• Peel: a very fast takeout that removes a guard and in which your own stone also leaves play. It is played to clear the sheet, for example when leading.
• Double takeout: one stone removes two opposing stones. A premier skill that often decides ends.
• Runback: your stone hits a stone in front of the house, which in turn knocks another stone out of the house. This lets you reach stones behind guards.
• Raise takeout: a similar principle in which one of your own stones is driven forward and removes an opposing stone.

Pace and sweeping

A takeout is played with much more weight, i.e. pace, than a draw. The skip sets the pace, often in steps such as "control", "normal" or "peel". The faster the stone, the less it curls and the straighter it runs. On takeouts, players sweep mainly to hold the line: sweeping makes the stone run straighter and further; without sweeping it curls more.

When do teams play takeouts?

Takeouts are the tool for safety. A team that is leading clears stones away and keeps the house empty so that the opponent cannot build up points. A team with the hammer that would only score one point uses takeouts to force a blank end and keep the last stone. A team that is behind, on the other hand, prefers guards and draws to complicate the game.

Limits from the free guard zone

At the start of an end, takeouts are restricted. Because of the free guard zone, guards in front of the house may not be knocked out of play until after the fifth stone of an end. Stones in the house, however, may be removed at any time.

Technique for beginners

For a takeout, a stronger push out of the hack is enough at first. Direction matters more than power: even small deviations at release make the stone miss its target. Coaches advise beginners to focus on the skip's broom as the target and to follow through with a straight arm. Precise takeouts are among the first successes in curling because you see the result immediately.