A new-look elimination format might be to blame for the rookies’ early-season struggles on the WSL Championship Tour. Photo: WSL//Beatriz Ryder
After two stops on the 2026 WSL Championship Tour, the rookies have been struggling — and the new first-round elimination format might have something to do with it.
There are nine rookies on the tour — five women and four men. None of them have made it past the second round this season. Combined, the rookies have lost 10 of their 18 opening heats, an expedited exit with the new elimination format that makes every heat count.
The previous format had a non-elimination seeding round, then three-surfer heats in round two where the top two advanced. Surfers had a lot more opportunity to get reps and adapt, and could even surf three heats without ever winning one. Now, with the new format intended to speed up the contests, increase viewer engagement, and take advantage of fleeting swell windows, every heat eliminates surfers. If you get thrown out in sloppy conditions and lose, there are no second chances.
Liam O’Brien, a four-year tour veteran, thinks the new format may be at the center of the lackluster rookie performances thus far.
“I think the biggest losers under this new format are the rookies who, with limited experience at a lot of the tour stops, no longer get a ‘free swing’ at a heat before facing elimination,” O’Brien told The Inertia.
But O’Brien understands the logic behind the format.
“Whilst the safety net of a non-elimination round was a nice luxury as an athlete, I can appreciate that from a spectator’s point of view, it was a bit of a drag. The new format, albeit a little unsympathetic, guarantees consequence from the outset, which is far more engaging,” O’Brien added. “Ultimately, every other major individual sport operates under a similar format, and if I had to choose between this or having a mid-season cut, I’d much prefer the current scenario.”
While it’s admittedly tricky to compare the current rookie struggles to previous seasons, given the variability in surfers, venue locations, and format, the 2025 rookies had already shown flashes of success after two events.
At Pipeline, the opening event in 2025, rookie George Pittar made the quarterfinals. Joel Vaughn got to the round of 16. At the next event, the Abu Dhabi wave pool, Jackson Bunch made the quarterfinals and Vahine Fierro made the semis. This year, the rookies are clogging up the bottom of the rankings.
Rookies struggling is no surprise. They’re starting a new phase of their careers and are consistently matched up against the best, higher-seeded competitors. But the uniformity with which they have been struggling has been noteworthy. When the tour heads to the next stop on the Gold Coast, we’ll see if one of the fresh faces on tour can break through and climb up the rankings, or if their lack of experience will continue to show.
