In curling, you only score at the end of each round (called an “end”), and only one team can score in that end.

The basic idea

  • Each team throws eight stones per end, alternating shots.
  • After all 16 stones are thrown, you look at which stone is closest to the center of the target (the “button”).
  • Whichever team owns that closest stone is the only team that scores in that end.

How points are counted

  • The scoring team gets 1 point for every one of its stones that is closer to the button than the opponent’s closest stone.
  • Stones must be in or touching the colored rings (the “house”) to count; anything completely outside the house is 0.
  • Example:
    • Team A has the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd closest stones to the button, and Team B’s best stone is 4th.
    • Team A scores 3 points that end.

Ends, hammer, and blanks

  • A game has 8–10 ends in most events; total points after all ends decides the winner.
  • The team that throws last in an end has the “hammer,” which is a big strategic advantage.
  • If the hammer team scores, the hammer switches to the other team in the next end.
  • If no one scores (a “blank end”), it’s 0–0 for that end, and the team that had the hammer keeps it for the next end.

What happens in a tie

  • If the score is tied after the scheduled number of ends, teams play extra ends (overtime) until someone wins an end and thus the game.

Quick mental shortcut:
After every end, find the single closest stone. Only that stone’s team scores, counting how many of their stones are closer than the opponent’s best one.