If you watched any of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic coverage over the last two weeks, you most certainly caught a glimpse of curling. The sport is relatively new to the Olympics and gets its fair share of jokes! But, did you know there are some serious ties between golf and curling? A recent About.com article described the relationship between the two sports.

One tie is the LPGA Tour player Maria Hjorth. Hjorth has been on the LPGA Tour since 1998, and before moving to Florida, was a superb curling player. Hjorth played in Sweden as a child and even won a bronze medal at the 1992 World Junior Curling Championships. Until she joined the LPGA, she split her time between golf and curling.

Not only do the two sports share players, they also share a homeland. Curling was invented in Scotland, with the first documented curling contest held in 1541. And, as we all know, the modern game of golf originated in Scotland on the site of the Old Course at St. Andrews.

Curling stones also come from Scotland. Ailsa Craig is a large island off the coast of Turnberry that is made entirely of granite. The best curling stones in the world are made from this granite: blue hone granite.

Did you watch curling during the Olympics?

Golf has always been a game of rules, and usually players respect those rules to the fullest. Recently, Scott McCarron recently accused Phil Mickelson, who used the Ping-Eye 2 wedge with square grooves, of cheating in the San Francisco Chronicle, saying “It’’s cheating, and I”m appalled Phil has put it in play.”

The controversy stems from a new USGA rule that bans the use of wedges with square grooves. The USGA made one exception: the Ping-Eye 2 wedges that were made before 1990. Why was this exception made? Well, way back in 1990, the USGA and Ping settled a lawsuit out of court. The outcome was that the USGA agreed to grandfather in all previously made Ping-Eye 2 wedges.

Mickelson was furious with the comments that McCarron made and felt his name had been slandered. Mickelson refused to comment in detail about the situation, saying only, “I”ll have to let other people handle that.”

So, the question is: While it’’s not technically cheating to use the wedge that Mickelson uses, is it wrong?

We already know Hilton Head in the spring is a great place for golfers to escape, but now the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce has teamed up with the Lowcountry Golf Course Owners Association to bring even more excitement to the area.

The first ever Chamber Golf Week will be held March 1 – 7. Along with great golf specials and a Verizon Pro Am raffle, there will be events and fun for golfers of all ages from putting contests to a Golf Fashion Show.

If you have a great short game, then you definitely should check out the daily putting contests. Daily winners will get a 2010 Verizon Heritage Clubhouse ticket and the chance to compete in the putting championship on Sunday, March 7. The winner of the championship contest will win a Verizon Heritage Arnold Palmer Pass valued at $450!

Now, if your golfing wardrobe is in need of some fashion help, make sure to catch the Golf Week Fashion Show on Tuesday, March 2. The fashion show will feature 2010 spring golf fashions for men and women.

For all the aspiring young golfers out there, the Chamber Golf Week has organized a Clubs for Kids event on Saturday, March 6. The event will provide full swing and putting clinics. And the best part: every participant will receive one complimentary golf club!

What are you most looking forward to?

How many of you out there took a break from work on last Friday and tuned in to the Tiger Woods press conference? Well, here’’s a recap of the event and some insight into what will happen next.

At 11 a.m. on Friday, Woods read a prepared statement to a select few, including his mother, former Stanford teammate Notah Begay and PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem, at the PGA Tour headquarters in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Tiger’’s wife Elin was not in attendance.

He apologized to his family, friends, fans and supporters, but asked the media to leave his family alone, saying he was the one who made the mistakes and not to take it out on them. During the press conference he admitted he had been in therapy for the past 45 days and that he would return to therapy the following day.

Then, about half way through, he discussed when he would return to golf. He said, “I do plan to return to golf one day. I just don”t when that day will be. I don”t rule out it will be this year.” This left many, who had hoped he would return for the Masters, unsure of what to think.

There was mixed reactions from the golf and celebrity communities. Golfer Ben Crane said he thought it was an amazing conference, and that Tiger was very humble, but Bill McGowan, image consultant for Clarity Media Group, stated that the whole thing was just too rehearsed and a little too scripted for his liking. To read more industry and celebrity reactions, visit www.nytimes.com.

Did you watch the press conference? What did you think? Was he sincere or too rehearsed?

Mike Bender was recently named the PGA of America National Teacher of the Year. Is there anyone more qualified to give some golf tips and lessons to the average golfer? We don”t think so. Here’’s some advice from Mike from a recent Golf.com interview.

Bender recommends making a commitment and working with a PGA teaching pro on a regular basis. Just getting a tip here and there will never compare to the knowledge and technique you can learn when working with a great teacher consistently.

When it comes to fitness levels, Bender says that fitness is important to the game of golf. He says there’’s no downside to becoming fitter, but that learning proper technique will help improve your game more than any fitness improvements.

Now that you know you need to focus on technique, how much do you focus on each part? Bender recommends 1/3 or your total practice time on full swing and 2/3 on your short game. Bender says that “time invested in short game practice is almost always rewarded on the course immediately. Time spent on the full swing oftentimes is not.”

And last, but not least, get fitted for you equipment. With all the advances in equipment, the right fit can really make a difference.

What do you think of these teaching tips? Do you work with a PGA teaching pro?

There are so many things that can go wrong on a golf course that it’’s critical to learn and practice basic golf recovery skills. Lifeintherough.com recently listed some of the most important recovery skills to know and use.

The first skill is working on your sand game. Make sure to work on practice green and fairway bunker shots when practicing. Sand shots can be very simple to execute if you have the knowledge and put in the practice time.

Lifeintherough.com also suggests you practice your low shots. Everyone will eventually get stuck too close to a tree and need to pull out the low shot. They suggest this technique for the low shot:

“To execute a low punch, address the ball with a stance that is a little more narrow than normal. The ball should be way back, well behind center. Your weight should be mostly on your left side and will stay there throughout the swing. Your backswing should be somewhat short, as with a wedge shot and you should keep your hands somewhat low on the follow-thorough.”

The next skill will help you out of a situation that golfers see way too often: hitting from thick rough. Usually the best club for this shot is a wedge, but occasionally you may be forced to use a fairway wood. Make sure to shorten your swing and remember the spin on your ball will be lessened by the rough, so plan accordingly.

What’’s the best recovery skill you”ve learned? Any tips?

When Tiger returns is still up in the air, but some think the fan reaction is already evident. The Waggleroom.com posted a photo of some fans mocking Tiger, with signs that read “I”ve been with Tiger” and photos of Tiger with a photo shopped “pimp” hat on.

Most golf fans are very respectful, but we”ve seen the hecklers come out lately. Think of last year’’s Players Championship when a fan got tossed for catcalling “FIGJAM” at Phil Mickelson. It Mickelson gets those remarks, what’’s in store for Tiger?

The next question is can Tiger take it? He’’s been the “hero” of the sport for so long that being the anti-hero of the game may effect his concentration and score. We know Woods is not very tolerant of fans that break decorum. He’’s been known to have a fit when a fan makes a noise, so can he keep his cool when the insults and mocking starts in the gallery?

How do you think fans will react to his return? Would you mock him at a tournament?

Have you ever dreamed of being on the PGA Tour? Maybe you played like a pro last weekend, and you started wondering how you could actually get paid for it! Well, Phil Bundy has been on a quest to play on the PGA tour, and he has some insight on what you must accomplish in order to be in that exclusive club.

Here are Bundy’’s 5 ways to become a member of the PGA Tour:

1. If you finish within the top 25 at the annual PGA Tour National Qualifying Tournament, you are exempt for the following year.

2. If you win a cosponsored or approved PGA TOUR event, you are exempt for the following two calendar years.

3. If you finish among the top 150 players on the official money list in a year, you are exempt for the following season.

4. If you win an amount of official money equal to the amount won in the preceding year by the 150th finisher on the official money list, you will become a member for the remainder of the season.

5. If you finish in the top 25 on the official Nationwide Tour money list, you will can play in the following season.

Bunday admits that “qualifying to become a member of the all-exempt PGA Tour may be the most difficult barrier to break in all of professional sports.”

Do you think you have what it takes to get on the PGA Tour? Are these requirements effective?

Many blogs were buzzing last weekend about John Daly’’s future. After failing to make the cut at the Farmers Insurance Open last weekend, he made the following comments to the Golf Channel:  

“I”m done, I can”t compete. I can”t play like I used too. I can”t keep taking spots from guys out here playing this bad. It’’s not worth it. I”m tired of embarrassing myself in front of (my fans). I can”t do it anymore.”  

Then right after that interview, he posted some odd updates on Twitter, including this one: “I don”t like to continue to embarrass myself– maybe my mind may change down the road but right now I don”t have the money”  

But wait just a minute! After only 24 hours, Daly tweeted this out to his fans: “I”m not retired and never said I was retiring.” This whole thing is very confusing, and some say this is all a publicity stunt for his new reality show coming up in March.  

Here is the full interview Daly had with the Golf Channel. Watch it and tell us what you think.

The next advance in the video game world is always just around the corner, and Microsoft is promising something that could revolutionize the video game world.

Microsoft’’s new hands-free game control system is called Project Natal. David Hufford, director of Xbox product management, said he came up with the idea for the system while talking with his golf instructor. The two were chatting about ways to use a new system to improve golf swings, and the idea just came to him. Project Natal is so sophisticated, that it’’s 3D motion-tracking camera could potentially register the minute muscular movements in a golf swing.

On Microsoft’’s Web site, they explain the capabilities of Project Natal as “No controller required. See a ball? Kick it, hit it, trap it or catch it. If you know how to move your hands, shake your hips or speak, you and your friends can jump into the fun.”

Has anyone played golf on Nintendo Wii? Do you think the new Microsoft system will really help improve golf swings? By the way, the system will be available to purchase in late 2010, so start saving now!