Beginner’s guide
The same ice and the same scoring—with two players, five delivered stones, and two stones already waiting on the sheet.
The quick version
Mixed doubles is a faster version of curling played by two people instead of four.
At World Curling events, each team has one woman and one man. The game uses the same curling sheet and the same basic scoring as regular curling.
Before anyone throws
Before each end begins, one team’s stone is placed in the house near the back of the four-foot circle. The other team’s stone is placed as a guard in front of the house.
Unlike regular curling, the sheet is not empty when the end begins. That is why mixed doubles can become crowded and strategic very quickly.
Five stones per team
Each team delivers five stones during an end.
Because each team also starts with one pre-positioned stone, a team can have six stones counting in the house. Six is the maximum possible score in one end.
Everybody helps
Either player may sweep.
With only two people, everyone does a little bit of everything. A player may deliver the stone, get up quickly, and help sweep it. The other player may hold the broom and call the shot.
Last-stone advantage
The hammer simply means having the last delivered stone of the end.
In the normal setup, the team with last-stone advantage begins with its pre-positioned stone inside the house. The other team begins with the guard and delivers the first stone.
After an end, the team that did not score normally gets the placement decision for the next end.
A key difference
A team generally cannot blank an end just to keep the hammer. If neither team scores, the next placement decision follows the mixed doubles rules instead of simply staying with the same team.
Once per game
Normally, the two starting stones are placed along the center of the sheet.
During a Power Play, those stones move to one side of the house. One becomes a corner guard, and the other sits in the house behind it.
Teams often use a Power Play when they want a better chance to score several points. Moving the action away from the center can create more room around the button.
A Power Play cannot be used in an extra end.
Keeping stones in play
Early in the end, the stones are protected. Before the fourth delivered stone, a player cannot knock an already-played or pre-positioned stone completely out of play.
If that happens, the offending delivered stone is removed and the other stones are put back.
This rule keeps stones in play and creates the crowded houses mixed doubles is known for.
Eight ends
A mixed doubles game is scheduled for eight ends rather than the ten ends commonly used in championship four-person curling.
If the score is tied after eight ends, extra ends are played.
Closest to the button
Scoring works just like regular curling. At the end of an end, only one team can score.
The team with the stone closest to the button scores one point for every stone it has that is closer than the opponent’s closest stone. A pre-positioned stone counts exactly like any other stone.
HouseCall version
If regular curling is a chess match with four players, mixed doubles is the same board with half the people and twice the scrambling. 😂🥌
Once you understand the pre-positioned stones and the Power Play, the whole game becomes much easier to follow.
Rule details checked against The Rules of Curling (2026).
Watch a game and look for the two starting stones and the Power Play.