The Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast kicked off yesterday in some
fun surf. Let’s take a look at how Round 1 played out:
Heat 1: Snapper suits Italo Ferreira well, and he started
fast with the first wave of the season. It wasn’t anything special, but his
smoothness on his backhand was evident from the get-go. That same smoothness
earned him a 6.83 later in the heat, which ended up being the difference-maker.
Ryan Callinan got close, but Italo earned the berth into Round 3.
Heat 2: This was a strong heat, and I noted that it was a tough draw for Julian Wilson. Small waves are usually not the forte of Michel
Bourez, but he looked good, more like the 2014 version of The Spartan. Julian, my pick to win the event, finished
third in this heat. Not time to panic yet.
Heat 3: Filipe Toledo won this event last year, and he
looked good to start things off this time around. He took to the air in waves
that didn’t seem all that conducive, but that’s become his trademark. He’ll be
tough to beat at Snapper. Leaving him off my Fantasy Surfer team seemed suspect at the time, and now it feels
even worse.
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| Did you leave Filipe Toledo off your Fantasy Surfer team? Probably not a great move. Courtesy of Steven Tyler PJs |
Heat 4: Medina Medina Medina. No slow start this season. The
Brazilian looked dialed in, and his backhand is just naughty. He’s my pick to win the World Title this
season.
Heat 5: Mick Fanning might not surf all of the events this
season, but it’s clear that he didn’t slack off in training for this event. He
put up the best heat total of the round and looked like the classic Mick on a
pair of 8+ waves. Wade Carmichael, who narrowly missed out on a full-time spot
on tour, get a nod here for surfing really well. Drawing Mick is tough.
Heat 6: Mikey Wright won a really tight heat here, upsetting
the reigning World Champ. Adriano looked solid, as did Kolohe Andino, but
Wright edged it out.
Heat 7: Jeremy Flores is one of the more underrated surfers
on tour. Sure, everyone knows he’s an incredible barrel riders on his backhand,
but the Reunion Island native can tag some lips too. His rail game looked on
point in Round 1.
Heat 8: Matt Wilkinson has always had immense talent, but it
only seems to translate to contest sporadically. Perhaps this was one of those
sporadic occurrences, or maybe Wilko will finally put it together this year.
You’ve got to love his backhand, and he showcased why yesterday. He scored a
9.33 on one wave, going vertical with some serious hacks. He took down Kelly
Slater, the master, in this heat. Rookie Conner Coffin had one of the best turns
of the event here too.
Heat 9: A bit of an unspectacular heat here, but Nat Young
looked solid. Solid is probably the best way to describe the Santa Cruz goofy-footer
most of the time. He definitely showed his power in this heat, and the judges
seemed to like it.
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| Nat Young's power was on display on the Gold Coast yesterday. Courtesy of Steven Tyler PJs |
Heat 10: It feels like Taj Burrow is a bit of a forgotten
man this year, and I may be as guilty as the next guy. Taj looked great
yesterday on his forehand, and I’m glad I put him on my fantasy team for this
event. It’s kind of amazing that he hasn’t won a World Title, and his window
sure seems like it’s closed. Who says he can’t post a Top 5 finish this year,
though?
Heat 11: For me, this heat was all about Jordy Smith when it
began, but Wiggolly Dantas stole the show. He was dominant, surfing two really good waves and sending Jordy to
Round 2.
Heat 12: This was the heat I was most excited for in the
first round. Joel Parkinson, the veteran, was able to outdo the young guns in
this one. His patented smoothness was on display. While that’s not flashy, it
got the job done. John John Florence and Jack Freestone both surfed good heats,
but ultimately came up short. Parko just did a great job of maximizing his
scores on waves that were not all that great, and that ended up being the difference.
The winners head to Round 3, while the rest of the guys have to surf in Round 2. Until then...
Follow Morgan, founder
of Go Left, on Twitter @GoLeftSurf
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