Hawaiian two-time world surfing champion John John Florence has once again demonstrated his big wave prowess in the opening round of the Margaret River Pro in Western Australia.
The 29-year-old dominated in the 10‘ to 14’ foot conditions on Friday, making critical turns under the lip and timing his finishes to perfection to score 15.60 for his two best waves, almost seven points ahead of Peruvian Lucca Mesinas in second place.
The event window opened on Sunday, and although the women completed their opening round in solid waves on Monday, there had been a lack of significant swell since, that is, until Friday, when Margaret River came to life, turning on the swell that it’s famous for.
Florence, who won the event in 2017 and 2019, said Western Australia is one of his favourite places on the Championship Tour.
“It’s cool because the predominant wind blows into the rights, which in Hawaii it’s the complete opposite, it blows into the lefts, and so having it blow into the rights like that is so exciting for me because we never get that at home and...you can do the biggest airs.
“And I can ride the boards that I ride here at home all the time, which I love,” he said.
The other stand-out performer of the opening round so far has been fellow Hawaiian Ezekiel Lau, who pulled a heat total of 15.00, including an 8.67 for a great read on a big set wave.
He finished almost two points ahead of Australian Ryan Callinan, while 11-time world champ Kelly Slater finished third and will have to battle through the elimination round.
Additionally, 2019 world champ Italo Ferreira and Australia’s rising stars Conor O'Leary and Ethan Ewing also looked comfortable in the heavy conditions, with heat scores of 14.17, 13.80, and 13.70, respectively.
Meanwhile, in the women’s opening round, Malia Manuel of Hawaii and Tyler Wright of Australia, fresh from her Bells Beach victory, looked strongest in the head-high plus conditions on Monday, the former scoring 13.60 and the latter 13.40.
The competition is set to continue on Saturday, waves permitting, with elimination rounds for both the men and women.
