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Mark Watt (curler)

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Mark Watt
Curler
Born (1999-10-31) 31 October 1999 (age 25)
Stirling, Scotland
Team
Curling clubDunning CC,
Perth, SCO[1]
SkipJames Craik
ThirdMark Watt
SecondAngus Bryce
LeadBlair Haswell
Mixed doubles
partner		Lisa Davie
Curling career
Member Association Scotland
 Great Britain
Medal record
Men's Curling
Representing  Great Britain
World University Games
Gold medal – first place 2023 Saranac Lake
Representing  Scotland
World Junior Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2020 Krasnoyarsk
Scottish Men's Championship
Silver medal – second place 2023 Dumfries
Silver medal – second place 2024 Dumfries
Scottish Mixed Doubles Championship
Silver medal – second place 2024 Perth
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Perth

Mark Watt (born 31 October 1999 in Stirling) is a Scottish curler from Auchterarder.[1][2] He currently plays third on Team James Craik. Playing for Craik, Watt won gold at the 2023 Winter World University Games and bronze at the 2020 World Junior Curling Championships.

Career

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Juniors

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Watt won the Scottish Junior Curling Championships in 2020, playing third for James Craik. The team also included second Blair Haswell and lead Niall Ryder.[3] This earned the rink the right to represent Scotland at the 2020 World Junior Curling Championships, in Krasnoyarsk, Russia. There, they topped the round robin with a 7–2 record, earning themselves a spot in the playoffs. The team then lost to Switzerland's Marco Hösli 9–6 in the semifinal before defeating Germany's Sixten Totzek 6–5 to capture the bronze medal.[4] With Watt aging out of juniors following the cancelled 2020–21 season, he created a new team with Gregor Cannon, Haswell and Gavin Barr. This lineup saw limited success, only reaching the playoffs in two of seven World Curling Tour events and finishing with a 4–6 record at the 2022 Scottish Curling Championships.[5]

Men's

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Watt and Haswell reunited with former teammates Craik and Angus Bryce for the 2022–23 season, forming a team to represent Great Britain at the 2023 Winter World University Games.[6] On the European tour, the team found success, reaching the semifinals of the 2022 Oslo Cup and 2023 Mercure Perth Masters and the quarterfinals of four other events.[7] This set the team up for a dominant run at the University Games, going 8–1 through the round robin and beating Canada's Dalhousie University team (skipped by Owen Purcell) in the semifinal to advance to the final. There, they beat the United States' Daniel Casper to claim the gold medal, becoming the second British men's team to do so.[8][9] After the championship, the team returned home to the Scottish men's championship where they reached the playoffs with a 5–2 record in the round robin. They then beat Ross Whyte in the semifinal before coming up short to Bruce Mouat in the final, who went on to win the 2023 World Men's Curling Championship.[10][11]

Now focused solely on men's play, Team Craik began the 2023–24 season with back-to-back playoff finishes at the 2023 Baden Masters and the 2023 Euro Super Series, losing out to Joël Retornaz and Bruce Mouat respectively. In October, the team went undefeated to win the Grand Prix Bern Inter, Watt's first tour victory.[12] With the points they accumulated throughout the 2022–23 and start of the 2023–24 season, the team rose high enough in the ranks to qualify for the 2023 National Grand Slam event.[13] They previously competed in the 2023 Tour Challenge Tier 2 event, however, lost in the quarterfinals to Mike McEwen. At the National, the team went 2–2 in the round robin, just enough to squeak into the playoff round. They were then defeated by Yannick Schwaller 6–5 in the quarterfinals.[14] Team Craik also had enough points to play in the next two Slams, the 2023 Masters and the 2024 Canadian Open. After missing the playoffs at the Masters, the team again went 2–2 at the Canadian Open and had a good enough draw total to reach the playoffs. This time, it was Mouat who took them out in the quarterfinal round by a 5–4 score.[15] In February, the team had another strong showing at the national men's championship, going 6–2 in the round robin and qualifying for the 1 vs. 2 game.[16] There, they lost 7–3 to Team Whyte but rebounded with a 9–1 win over Team Mouat to reach the final. There, they again came up short to Whyte, losing 7–6.[17] The team ended their season at the 2024 Players' Championship Slam where they went 1–4.[18]

Mixed doubles

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Watt played in his first Scottish Mixed Doubles Curling Championship in 2022 with partner Katie McMillan. There, the pair finished 4–1 through the round robin, advancing to the playoffs where they beat Sophie Sinclair and Ross Whyte in the quarterfinals. They then lost to Jennifer Dodds and Bruce Mouat in the semifinals, settling for third.[19] The following year, Watt paired with Hannah Farries, missing the playoffs with a 2–3 record.[20]

In 2024, Watt again played in the national championship, teaming up with Lisa Davie to reach the playoffs with a 5–1 record.[21] In the quarterfinals, Davie and Watt beat Fay Henderson and Euan Kyle 7–5 before going on to defeat Rebecca Morrison and Kyle Waddell 8–3 in the semifinals. This advanced them to the final where they lost 9–3 to Sophie Jackson and Duncan McFadzean, earning the silver medal from the championship.[22]

Personal life

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Watt works at the Perth Trophy Shop. He previously studied at Open University. His father Iain Watt won silver at the 1990 World Junior Curling Championships and his sister Laura Watt won gold at the 2023 World Junior Curling Championships.[1]

Teams

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Season Skip Third Second Lead
2016–17[23] James Craik Mark Watt Matthew McKenzie Niall Ryder
2017–18 James Craik Angus Bryce Mark Watt Niall Ryder
2018–19 Angus Bryce Mark Watt Mark Taylor George Smith
2019–20 James Craik Mark Watt Blair Haswell Niall Ryder
2020–21 James Craik Mark Watt Blair Haswell Niall Ryder
2021–22 Mark Watt Gregor Cannon Blair Haswell Gavin Barr
2022–23 James Craik Mark Watt Angus Bryce Blair Haswell
2023–24 James Craik Mark Watt Angus Bryce Blair Haswell
2024–25 James Craik Mark Watt Angus Bryce Blair Haswell

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Team Craik: Mark Watt Profile". British Curling. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  2. ^ "Auchterarder curler Mark Watt wins senior tour title in Switzerland with Team Craik". Daily Record. 31 October 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  3. ^ "Scottish Curling Junior Championships 2020". Scottish Curling. 26 January 2020. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  4. ^ "Canada retain junior men's world title in Krasnoyarsk". World Curling Federation. 22 February 2020. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  5. ^ "2022 Scottish Curling Men's & Women's Championships". Scottish Curling. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  6. ^ "Scottish curlers compete at Winter Universiade 2023". Scottish Curling. 12 January 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  7. ^ "Team James Craik: 2022–23". CurlingZone. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  8. ^ "Great Britain men and China women win FISU World University Games". World Curling Federation. 22 January 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  9. ^ Andrew Robson (25 January 2023). "Gold for Stirling Curler at World University Games". Brig Newspaper. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  10. ^ "Team Mouat take fourth Scottish men's title at 2023 championships". Scottish Curling. 6 February 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  11. ^ "Scotland win World Men's gold". World Curling Federation. 10 April 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  12. ^ "Timely win tees Craik up for first crack at Tier 1 Slam". British Curling. 29 October 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  13. ^ Jonathan Brazeau (20 October 2023). "Field finalized for 2023 KIOTI National in Pictou County". Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  14. ^ Jonathan Brazeau (11 November 2023). "Bottcher escapes with win over Whyte in KIOTI National men's quarterfinals". Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  15. ^ Jonathan Brazeau (20 January 2024). "Red Deer Redemption: Gushue ousts Schwaller in rematch at Canadian Open". Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  16. ^ "The Hendricks Gin – Scottish Curling Men's & Women's Championship". Scottish Curling. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  17. ^ "Team Whyte are the 2024 Scottish Men's Champions". Scottish Curling. 11 February 2024. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  18. ^ Jonathan Brazeau (12 April 2024). "Defending champ Wrana secures bye to Princess Auto Players' Championship semifinals". Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  19. ^ "Muirhead/Lammie win Scottish Curling Mixed Doubles Championship 2022". Scottish Curling. 6 March 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  20. ^ "Scottish Curling Mixed Doubles Championship 2023". Scottish Curling. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  21. ^ "Scottish Curling Mixed Doubles Championship 2024". Scottish Curling. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  22. ^ "Sophie Jackson and Duncan McFadzean are the 2024 Scottish Mixed Doubles Champions". Scottish Curling. 25 February 2024. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  23. ^ "Mark Watt Past Teams". CurlingZone. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
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