Round 1 of The 2014 Samsung Galaxy ASP World Championship Tour Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast is officially in the books. Conditions were decent, and the first day of the new ASP’s Quik Pro went off without any giant hitches. There weren’t too many giant surprises, either. Parko, Slater, Taj… those names sound familiar? They all won their heats. The only guy missing from that party is current World Champ, Mick Fanning, who was beaten by a Dane Reynolds in different form. Watch the event live here.
Round 1 Heat 1
Jeremy Flores (FRA) 13.76, Travis Logie (ZAF) 13.40, Julian Wilson (AUS) 12.00
The 2014 Samsung Galaxy ASP World Championship Tour season opened up in halfway-to-perfect Snapper Rocks. Heat 1 pitted hometown boy Julian Wilson against Jeremy Flores and Travis Logie.
I often wish that surfing contests would open with guaranteed-to-be-exciting heats. This was not one of those heats. Sure, Julian Wilson looks like an Australian Jonathan Taylor Thomas and he surfs really well. That wasn’t enough to start things off with a bang. Mid-range scores from all the competitors kept this heat as a bit of a sleeper.
While many expected Wilson’s polish and familiarity at Snapper would make him a sure thing to win his heat, he just couldn’t seem to find the waves to show it. Logie and Flores both showed more aggression in the water, posting wave scores in the seven-point range.
Round 1 Heat 2
Taj Burrow (AUS) 16.17, Miguel Pupo (BRA) 11.83, Dion Atkinson (AUS) 7.37
Everyone loves Taj. He’s one of the older guys on the Tour, and he really deserves a World Title. Either way, he’s had a blast trying for it, and still seems to be having more fun than anyone else.
Heat 2 found Miguel Pupo, Taj Burrow, and Dion Atkinson facing off. The first few minutes were full of frenzied attacks from Pupo, landing him a few decent scores.
Burrow, the old dog of the heat, showed a bit of caution and waited for the right waves. Almost halfway into the heat, he pulled down an 8.67 on his first wave, then backed it up with a strong 7.50. Those two scores would be enough for him to win the heat.
While Dion Atkinson managed to stand up on the most solid wave of the heat and lay down an opening turn that bodes well for the rookie’s future, he wasn’t able to hold it together enough to find a backup score.
Round 1 Heat 3
Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 13.03, Brett Simpson (USA) 12.37, Jordy Smith (ZAF) 8.40
Heat 3 could just as well have been an arm wrestle. Freddy P, Brett Simpson, and Jordy Smith are all stronger than each other. The only thing for sure is that Jordy Smith would win if it were a nipple pinching contest, because his are so close together and would prove difficult to grab.
Pattachia opened up strong with a mid-7, then didn’t let his guard down for the rest of the heat. Newlywed Jordy Smith and American Brett Simpson were almost relegated to a battle between themselves while Pattachia kept the door effectively shut for most of the heat.
Round 1 Heat 4
Joel Parkinson (AUS) 16.43, Bede Durbidge (AUS) 13.60, Tiago Pires (PRT) 9.93
Parko lives for Snapper, and Snapper lives for Parko. They are a perfect match, and Heat 3 of the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast showed it. While the tide started to drop and conditions began to deteriorate slightly, Bede Durbidge pulled it together and gave Joel Parkinson a real run for his money.
Bede held the lead for most of the heat until, in the dying minutes of the heat, Snapper threw Parko a bone in the form of a beautiful set wave. An 8.93 put Parko solidly in the lead, and he would take the heat.
Round 1 Heat 5
Kelly Slater (USA) 14.97, Matt Banting (AUS) 13.67, Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 11.07
Slater did what everyone thought he would do in heat 5: win. Of course he did. He’s Kelly Slater. Whether it’s favoritism, talent, or a mix of both, everyone expects him to win. The tide broke up the frequency of the waves a little, but also gave up barrels for the King and his followers.
While Wilko and Banting put on a good show, using almost everything in the book, it just wasn’t enough to beat Slater, who found barrels where no one else would be looking.
Round 1 Heat 6
Dane Reynolds (USA) 14.83, Mick Fanning (AUS) 14.20, Adam Melling (AUS) 10.50
I’ll bet that Mick Fanning must HATE losing to Dane Reynolds. While Fanning’s in the gym doing squats and yelling, Dane’s sitting on his couch with his hand down his pants watching cartoons and eating bowls of cereal and drinking beer.
Although Dane’s unpredictability has been a hindrance in the past, there are subtle hints that he might be taking this year a bit more seriously. Only time will tell, but he looked on point against two of the strongest regular-footers on tour.
Round 1 Heat 7
Adrian Buchan (AUS) 11.90, Kai Otton (AUS) 10.10, Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 8.63
The wave machine really seemed to turn off for this heat. Ace Buchan, Kai Otton, and Raoni Monteiro paddled around for the duration of the heat, looking desperately at one another while trying not to look desperate. If the conditions they had in their heat were consistent all day, I’ll bet they might’ve run the women’s heats. How much does that suck?
In the end, though, Buchan showed off his prowess with an I’ll-take-what-I-can-get attitude. Although he only logged two mid-range scores, Otton and Monteiro wouldn’t be able to catch up. At least the waves can only get better.
Round 1 Heat 8
Nat Young (USA) 13.50, Sebastian Zietz (HAW) 13.17, Aritz Aranburu (EUK) 8.30
Nat Young has legs like tree trunks. He used them to leg press his way to a win in Heat 8. As last year’s ASP WCT Rookie of the Year, Young had a bit of pressure on him to see if he’d pick up where he left off, and he did.
In improving conditions, Young, Seabass, and Aranburu fought it out. Although Nat Young made it obvious early on that he would be taking this heat, Seabass and Aranburu fought tooth and nail to open the door back up. At around the ten minute mark, it looked as though Zeitz might get his foot in when he logged a mid 7, but could find the backup he needed.
Round 1 Heat 9
Josh Kerr (AUS) 17.54, Filipe Toledo (BRA) 12.54, Mitch Crews (AUS) 12.50
This was one of the more exciting heats of the day. With low tide in the rearview mirror and conditions improving dramatically, Kerr, Toledo, and the new guy, Crews, entered the water. Although Crews has since moved to the U.S. he seemed happy to start the year off in home waters. Although he didn’t fare too well, his performance was great to watch.
Crews and Toledo put on a good display of rail to rail and power surfing, but it was Kerr’s all-around prowess that the judges liked, awarding him with a few scores that would prove good enough to miss out on Round 2.
Round 1 Heat 10
Gabriel Medina (BRA) 15.67, John John Florence (HAW) 10.10, Jadson Andre (BRA) 8.33
I am always surprised when John John doesn’t win. I’ve said before that I think he’s the best in the world. Medina won this heat with a sort of frantic aggression, packing in as many maneuvers as the wave would allow.
After Jadson Andre’s retreat from the spotlight, he looked strong on his return. And although he couldn’t compete with Medina’s panicky wave-smashing and John John’s collectedness, I think he’ll still do just fine in 2014.
Round 1 Heat 11
C.J. Hobgood (USA) 14.73, Adriano de Souza (BRA) 14.54, Alejo Muniz (BRA) 10.27
C.J. Hobgood surfed calmly through this heat, proving that patience is indeed a virtue. Both Adriano and Alejo had the same frenzied approach as Medina, and although they caught more waves, the quality didn’t exceed the quantity.
De Souza almost had it, though, and he’s on fire right now. After recently winning the Hurley Australian Open QS event, he moved on to Snapper with passion. Muniz opened strong, but failed to find a backup score that would allow him the win.
Round 1 Heat 12
Michel Bourez (PYF) 12.10, Owen Wright (AUS) 10.87, Kolohe Andino (USA) 7.50
Owen Wright is back! That’s good news. After suffering a back injury, Wright’s been training his ass off to get back in the water. Unfortunately, though, he couldn’t fend off Michel Bourez, who looked fantastically strong through the entire final heat of Round 1.
While Heat 12 had a bit of a slower start, the final minutes turned into a whirlwind of back and forths between all three competitors. Wright had the lead until the dying minutes, when Bourez dropped just enough of a score to take the win.
