Strategy & Tactics – Part Deux

So remembering; that Strategy represents your team’s basic means of achieving its intended outcomes in any given end, and provides direct tangible guidance as to the various shots that you should select.

We have developed the 4 steps of the strategic planning process – Strategic profile, Game Plan, End Plan and Shot Selection, right?

As we discussed; an End Plan represents your team’s specific blueprint for the current end, clearly defining your intended objective(s), along with particular strategy that you will use to achieve them. We need now to clear up what realistic objectives with and without last rock will be.

Realistic Objectives With last Rock

We must break the objectives into our 4 stages of an end while understanding that the objective is good there can be inherent risks to each selection.

Strategy Type	Realistic Objective	Inherent Risk
Protecting	Blank End/Score 1	Lowest Odds of Scoring 2
Probing (-)	Score 1 or Score 2	Limited odds of scoring more than 2
Probing (+)	Score 2/Score 1	Decent Odds of stealing against
Pursuing	Score 2/ Score 3 or more	Highest Odd of stealing against

Realistic Objectives Without last Rock

Strategy Type	Realistic Objective	Inherent Risk
Protecting	1 against/Blank end	Lowest Odds of stealing end
Probing (-)	1 against/steal 1	Limited odds of stealing end
Probing (+)	Steal 1/1 against	Decent Odds of Multiple against
Pursuing	Steal 1/Steal 2 or more	Highest Odds of Multiple against

So to better understand the strategy type we need to use a bit clearer language which might better explain the type. In the simplest terms we can put it together like this;

Protecting – STOP

Probing (-) – Be prepared to stop

Probing (+) – Be prepared to GO

Pursuing – GO

Simple right!

Your Game Plan identifies a ‘probable range’ of strategic options for each stage of the game. It applies until one team is able to build what you would consider to be a ‘sustainable lead’.  What a “sustainable lead” means to your team is up to your team, be it up 2 or be it up 3 or more is for you to discover. Your End Plan allows you to identify the ‘particular strategy’, that is most suitable at that time. In a relatively close game this will come from the ‘range’ of strategies built in to your Game Plan.

So what is the best way to decide on an End Plan? Well, there are a few steps you need to review. First you MUST evaluate the scoreboard, understanding the scoreboard will set the tone for the end plan and in some cases even decided the game plan. Second, you need to revisit the key moderators and thirdly you need to consider the momentum of the game. If you can continue the momentum you can take a team out of there game and on the other hand if you can break a team’s momentum you can kill not only an end for them but often a whole game.

As stated the Scoreboard is obviously the dominant factor to consider when deciding on a particular End Plan. In those cases when you do not consider a ‘sustainable lead’ to exist, you will need to consider other factors. The realities of the playing conditions and/or your opponent will often play a role in your decision. These factors will sometimes suggest the more aggressive option, and other times will suggest the safer one. With that momentum is a huge contributing factor. By definition, Momentum is the ‘positive flow’ that results from an edge in performance, or from a favorable break. So in curling if it’s on your side considers the more aggressive option; if it’s on their side consider the safer one. In other words; USE COMMON SENSE!

The scoreboard plays the major role throughout the game but generally it should be your only consideration once the games reaches stage 4 and 5. Teams that are serious about winning plan in advance for ALL potential scoreboard situations.

Does your team?

So in our next article we will be dealing with Shot Selection – however before we go there and in relation we need to review the “GREAT DEBATE” in curling.

In the 8^th end of a theoretical tied game which can include 1 point behind with or 1 point ahead without; what does your TEAM typically prefer?

Have you discussed it with your team? Have you come to a consensus of what the TEAM likes? Better yet do you know why? Does the why play to your teams strengths?

Ask your TEAM these questions; I think you may be surprised.

Oh and by the way, here is a hint regarding down one with or up one with out – there is NO right answer!