The 1981 Labatt Brier, the Canadian men's curling championship was held from March 1 to 8, 1981 at the Halifax Metro Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The total attendance for the week was 67,257.
Team Manitoba, who was skipped by Kerry Burtnyk won the Brier tankard as they defeated Northern Ontario, skipped by Al Hackner in the final 5âÂÂ4. Manitoba advanced to the final after beating Saskatchewan in the semifinal 5âÂÂ4. This was Manitoba's twenty-first Brier championship and the first of two skipped by Burtnyk. At 22 years, 3 months, and 15 days, Burtnyk became the youngest skip to ever win a Brier surpassing Hec Gervais' record by nearly five years when he won the .
The Burtynk rink would go onto represent Canada in the 1981 Air Canada Silver Broom, the men's world curling championship on home soil in London, Ontario where they lost in the semifinal to eventual champion Switzerland.
The event set a record for the most extra end games in a single Brier as fourteen games went to an extra end breaking the record of eleven set in . This remains a record and would only be matched in .
The teams were listed as follows:
Final Round Robin standings
All draw times are listed in Atlantic Standard Time ().
Sunday, March 1, 2:00 pm
Sunday, March 1, 8:00 pm
Monday, March 2, 9:30 am
Monday, March 2, 2:30 pm
Monday, March 2, 8:00 pm
Tuesday, March 3, 9:30 am
Tuesday, March 3, 2:30 pm
Tuesday, March 3, 8:00 pm
Wednesday, March 4, 9:30 am
Wednesday, March 4, 2:30 pm
Wednesday, March 4, 8:00 pm
Thursday, March 5, 2:30 pm
Thursday, March 5, 8:00 pm
Friday, March 6, 9:30 am
Friday, March 6, 2:30 pm
Ontario was awarded the bye into the second tiebreaker round based on head-to-head victories over both British Columbia and Saskatchewan in the round robin.
Friday, March 6, 8:00 pm
Saturday, March 7, 9:30 am
Saturday, March 7, 3:30 pm
Sunday, March 8, 3:00 pm
Final Round Robin Percentages
The media selected the following curlers as All-Stars.
The Ross Harstone Award was presented to the player chosen by their fellow peers as the curler who best represented Harstone's high ideals of good sportsmanship, observance of the rules, exemplary conduct and curling ability.
Alberta skip, Mel Watchorn became the first player to win the Harstone Award twice after previously winning the award in .