Yadin Nicol and Josh Kerr taste success on opening day of 2012 Hurley Pro
Australia?s Yadin Nicol and his fellow countryperson Josh Kerr got off to an ideal start at the sixth of ten stops on the 2012 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Championship Tour, 2012 Hurley Pro, claiming victory in their respective Round 1 heats that went down at the iconic Lower Trestles in San Clemente, California, on Sunday, September 16.
With Nicol walking away with the win in seventh heat to secure his place in the third round, his compatriot Owen Wright was forced to settle for second place despite an excellent performance. Brazil?s Miguel Pupo finished third, thus joining Wright in the relegation round.
The eighth heat saw Kerr advance straight into the third round after claiming top honours, whereas America?s Damien Hobgood and Australia?s Matt Wilkinson rounded out the second and third place respectively to find themselves taking a trip to the relegation round, where they are to surf again to earn their place in the third round.
The two-to-four foot waves breaking at the high-performance beach-break of Lower Trestles presented a perfect canvas for the elite ASP surfers to display their exquisite skills on.
Nicol, ASP World Championship Tour rookie, found himself pitted against the lethal Wright and Pupo during the seventh heat of Round 1.
As the heat got underway, the 27-year-old Australian got his hands on a superb 9.30-point ride early in the heat to claim an early lead. The lead slipped out of his hands as the heat progressed, but he managed to get back in the front with an 8.27-point wave in the dying minutes of the heat, finishing with a decisive heat-total of 17.57 points.
?It?s the first time I?ve won a Round 1 heat this year so it feels good,? Nicol said. ?The waves are really fun and I?m just stoked to finally get on an open face. I started off pretty shaky, I slipped on that very first wave. I had a section on that next wave and thought I?d do a little air and Owen (Wright) can get 8s and 9s in his sleep so on that last wave and I was just lucky to get it. This year hasn?t really been too kind to me and it was fun out there.?
Wright was nothing short of phenomenal during the course of the heat. He did almost everything right, nailing a 9.00 and 8.17-point ride, but in the end was unable to keep his compatriot from walking away with the win.
Pupo failed to impress in his Round 1 heat at Lower Trestles, scoring a mere 5.50 and 6.17 off his top-two waves to finish with a heat-total of 11.67 points.
The eighth heat saw Kerr walk away with the win after registering a heat-total of 13.20 points, which comprised of a 6.67 and 6.53-point ride.
Hobgood collected a couple of scores in the five-point range to register a heat-total of 10.63 points, consequently finishing second.
Wilkinson finished in third position after scoring a 5.17 and 2.83 off his best-two waves to finish with a heat-total of 8.00 points.
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