SURFERMAG.COM PROTOUR UPDATE
Sullivan & Irons Advance To Main Event
Sunday, November 24 (Sunset Beach, Oahu, Hawaii) Hawaiian Pancho Sullivan today won the Rip Curl Cup Trials, while Bruce Irons (Kauai) also advanced into the main event by placing second in this afternoon's final. The US$250,000 World Championship Tournament (WCT) commenced this morning on the first scheduled day of the waiting period, with four rounds completed before the two wildcards were selected.
Perfect 8-12 ft (3-4m) surf greeted organizers this morning at Sunset beach, with mostly clear skies and a lack of wind creating picturesque conditions. Swell decreased throughout the day, but great 6ft (2m) waves were still on offer for finalists between the 'Bowl' and 'Point' sections.
Sullivan, a previous two-time contest winner at Sunset, was slow to make his mark during the 30-minute decider. The 29-year-old fell on his first two rides, but eventually paddled over towards the Point, and it was there he locked into a long tube ride and the 7.67 score that catapulted him into the lead. During the final 10 seconds he then picked off another good barrel to seal victory.
"I didn't really feel like I found a good rhythm or was surfing to the best of my ability," began Sullivan afterward. "I just kept chipping away and took waves that looked like they might offer up a little barrel section. After seeing a couple of scores they (judges) gave tubes earlier, I figured I'd stick to my little corner section when it's this size and I got lucky.
"It means so much to me," he continued, on making the main event. "I've had some really bad luck out here the past couple of years in this event. I grew up surfing Sunset and it's been a long time since I actually did well here. It starts to eat away at your confidence level. It's a goal of mine to win the Triple Crown during my career and I feel I have the ability to do it.
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