Nat Young, USA
2016 Go Left World Ranking Projection: 8
2015 World Ranking: 10
2015 WCT Wins: 0
Nat Young is an interesting case. He surfs
consistently from heat to heat, and for the most part from event to event.
However, he rarely looks spectacular the way the guys ahead of him in the 2016 projected rankings often do. Nat is best on his backhand, as his hacks on rights can
be some of the best on tour. He has a lot of raw power, and that's probably
his biggest asset, but Young's not much of an aerial guy, he’s not a standout in
barrels and he needs a pretty big swell to truly showcase his abilities. That
said, there is enough potential for conditions of which Young can take advantage on
the World Tour for him to log another 10th, or better, in the world rankings.
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| Nat Young on his backhand, where he often puts up his best performances. Courtesy of Steven Tyler PJs |
Young has been on tour for three years now. In those three
seasons he’s finished eighth, 13th and 10th in the rankings. Like I said, consistency. He needs to perform really well in big, open-faced conditions to have a chance at a career year, which means he'd do well to advance
deep into events like Bells, Margaret River and J-Bay. 2015 saw Nat finish third,
third and ninth in those stops, respectively. I would expect similar results
in those events again in 2016, but if he can win one and make a final in
another he could be looking at a potential Top 5 finish in the rankings this
year. One thing is for sure; this guy works extremely hard. He’s just 24 years
old, but how much better will his repertoire get?
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