Are Men Better Curlers Than Women?

I watched some of the Continental Cup in Curling, but not nearly as much as Alan did. One thing that struck me as I watched the individual events was that the men seemed to make many more of the difficult shots and to score more points than the women did.

• Was this just a case of not seeing the entire event (a small sample problem) with me, or did the men really make more of those shots?
• If my observations are confirmed by the facts, note that the performance , by the men is not due their throwing the rocks with more weight. Throwing the rocks harder and faster would not have helped any one of those shots.
• And if my first two observations are correct, the next question is, "Why are men better curlers than women if the difference is not due solely to their ability to throw the rocks harder and faster?" Do men get paid more for winning?