The hammer in curling is the built‑in advantage of throwing the last stone in an end, and a lot of strategy in the sport revolves around getting it, using it, or taking it away.

What the hammer is

  • The hammer = last‑stone advantage in a given end.
  • Teams throw alternately; the team with the hammer always throws second and plays the final shot of the end.
  • That final shot lets you react to everything already in the house, either to score multiple points or to erase the opponent’s stones.

In practice, if nothing wild happens, the team with the hammer is expected to score at least one point and often aims for two or more.

How you get the hammer

Before the game

  • Before the first end, teams do a “Last Stone Draw” (LSD).
  • Two players from each team each throw a stone toward the button; officials measure how far they stop from the center.
  • The team with the better average distance (closer to the button) earns the hammer for the first end.

During the game

For standard team curling (men’s and women’s):

  • If you score in an end, you lose the hammer next end.
  • If you do not score (your opponent scores), you gain the hammer next end.
  • If the end is blank (no stones in the house, so no score), the team that already has the hammer keeps it.

Mixed doubles has a twist:

  • The hammer normally goes to the team that did not score in the previous end.
  • A blank end can force the hammer to flip to the other team, encouraging more aggressive play and higher‑scoring games.

Why the hammer matters so much

Think of the hammer like “last possession” in basketball or football: you get to see the situation, then answer it. Teams with the hammer typically:

  • Aim to score two or more points (“getting their two”).
  • Avoid being forced to take just one point if it would be better to blank the end and keep the hammer for a bigger score later.
  • Sometimes accept scoring nothing in the short term (blanking) to preserve the hammer for a more favorable setup.

Teams without the hammer usually:

  • Try to “force” the opponent to just one point (a decent defensive result).
  • Or try to “steal” an end (scoring when you don’t have hammer), which is a big momentum swing.

Hammer strategy in modern play

At high levels, games often revolve around hammer management :

  • Early ends:
    • With hammer, teams may play more open, looking for a clean two points.
    • Without hammer, they guard and clutter the center, hoping to steal or force one.
  • Mid‑game:
    • Skips (captains) often decide whether it’s worth taking a single point now or blanking to keep hammer for a better scoring chance.
  • Late game:
    • Trailing team desperately wants hammer in the final end to have a realistic comeback shot.
    • Leading team may use conservative shots to force the hammer team into just one point, preserving their lead.

A simple end‑game example: if you’re down by one point coming into the last end, you really want the hammer so you have the last shot to try to score two and win.

Mixed doubles extra wrinkle: positioned stones

In mixed doubles, the hammer changes how the end starts:

  • Before each end, one stone from each team is pre‑placed:
    • One as a guard just in front of the house.
    • One in the house, already counting.
  • The team with the hammer chooses which position their stone takes (guard or in the house).

That choice lets them lean into a defensive approach (use the guard) or a high‑scoring approach (stone already in the house), and it makes hammer even more strategically powerful. TL;DR: The hammer in curling is the right to throw the last stone of an end, usually earned by winning a pre‑game draw to the button and then traded back and forth based on who scores. It’s a huge strategic edge because that last shot can turn a bad situation into points, so teams constantly shape their tactics around getting the hammer at the right times and using it to score multiple points.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.