NORTH BAY, Ont. -- Canada's Jennifer Jones opened the women's world curling championship with an 11-5 victory over Anna Kubeskova of the Czech Republic on Saturday.
Jones, the 2008 world champion, scored four points in the first end and stole a pair in the second. Kubeskova halved the lead with a takeout for three in the third end at North Bay Memorial Gardens.
Kubeskova was light on a freeze attempt in the fourth and Jones made her pay with a hit to score four, putting the game out of reach.
The teams shook hands after the seventh end.
The opener marked the return of Canada third Kaitlyn Lawes to the lineup. She won Olympic mixed doubles gold last month in South Korea and had to miss the Scotties Tournament of Hearts.
Shannon Birchard filled in as vice-skip at the national playdowns and is back for this event as the alternate. She replaced Lawes after the fifth-end break.
Jones, from Winnipeg, was scheduled to play Switzerland's Binia Feltscher in the evening draw.
Canada is one of the headliners in a 13-team field that includes reigning Olympic champion Anna Hasselborg of Sweden and silver medallist Eunjung Kim of South Korea.
Round-robin play continues through Friday and the medal games are set for March 25. The four-team Page playoff system has been scrapped this year in favour of a six-team straight-knockout format.
This is the sixth career women's world championship appearance for Jones, who won bronze in 2010 and silver in 2015. She won Olympic gold at the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia.
Ottawa's Rachel Homan won world gold last year in Beijing. It was Canada's 16th title at the event since the inaugural competition in 1979.
