![]() Switzerland's Team Marco Hoesli (Photo: Anil Mungal/GSOC) continue strong run this season. By: Cameron Sallaj It's moving day at the 2025 AMJ Players' Championship in Toronto with six playoff spots up for grabs in both the men's and women's divisions. One of those teams looking to lock up a spot in the men's playoff round is Marco Hoesli and his Swiss squad from Glarus. Currently ranked ninth in the world, the team has had a superb 2024-25 season which they look to cap off with a strong performance at the Players'. After starting the event at 1-2, the Swiss rink of Hoesli, Philipp Hoesli, Simon Gloor and Justin Hausherr faced the United States' Korey Dropkin in Draw 12, a team that also needed a win to stay alive. Despite beginning with hammer, it was Dropkin's rink that got off to the better start in the game, forcing Hoesli to one in the first before scoring two in the second with last rock advantage. The Swiss were then forced again in the third before the fourth end was blanked. In the second half, the Swiss silver medalists came alive. After forcing Dropkin to just one in the fifth, the team got two back in the sixth before a pivotal steal of one in the seventh. Leading by two coming home, the team simply ran the Americans out of stones to clinch their second win in Toronto and keep their playoffs chances within reach. Currently on the men's side, Bruce Mouat and Yannick Schwaller lead Pool A with 3-1 records each while Ross Whyte, Marc Muskatewitz and Hoesli all sit one game back at 2-2. The rest of the matches Friday will dictate how the playoff picture is set up as all teams look to claim the coveted Players' Championship crown. Speaking of playoffs, two women's teams clinched the first two berths into the knockout round with wins Friday morning. Team Anna Hasselborg (4-0; Sundbyberg, SWE) evaded Team Satsuki Fujisawa (1-4; Kitami, JPN) 6-3 while Team Kim Eun-jung (4-0; Gangneung, KOR) bounced Team Sayaka Yoshimura (2-2; Sapporo, JPN) 7-3. Team Mike McEwen (3-1; Sasktoon, SK) also took a big step towards qualification with a 9-8 extra end victory over Team Matt Dunstone (2-2; Winnipeg, MB) in Pool Canada. The next draw from the 2025 AMJ Players' Championship gets underway at 11:30 am ET Friday with streaming of every game available on HomeTeamLive. |