The Surf Blog Spot

The Billabong Pro Teahupoo -Tahiti started May 9 and the contest will end on May 20, 2009.  This is event 3 of 10 on the ASP world surfing tour.  The Teahupoo event has completed the first 14 heats of Round 1, but is on hold for right now.  The contest officials have called for lay days this week due to weak swell and poor surfing conditions.

Watch for these exciting Round 2 heats:

Heat 8: Joel Parkinson (AUS) vs. Heiarii Williams (PYF)
Heat 13: Kelly Slater (USA) vs. Aritz Aranburu (EUK)

Other notables to watch in the 2009 Billabong Pro Teahupoo - Tahiti:

Former three-time ASP World Champion Andy Irons (HAW), 30, and Von Zipper Trials Winner Heiarii Williams (PYF) as wild-cards in the 2009 Billabong Pro Tahiti.

Watch the contest live and catch up on all the Billabong Pro Tahiti news

Wow! Believe it or not, but Andy Irons will not surf on the 2009 ASP World Surfing Tour.  Andy has decided to take the surfing tour year off.  He wants to chase swells, take surf trips with friends and re-focus on his life and relationships.

Andy has been on the ASP World Tour for 12 years and it looks like he needs a rest from the grueling tour.  He has won 3 ASP World Titles and won multiple surfing events.  He might enter a few select 2009 events as a wild-card and will have an automatic place on the 2010 ASP World Tour.  Andy will not have to requalify on the WQS Tour.

Last year Andy’s brother, Bruce Irons, annouced his retirment from the ASP World Tour.  Although Bruce retired, I think Andy will be back for the 2010 ASP World Tour. 

Read the Andy Irons interview about his 2009 ASP disappearance

The Top 45 surfers on the 2009 ASP World Tour have been decided with surfers rated 1-27 on the 2008 ASP World Tour ratings automatically re-qualifying for the 2009 tour. Bede Durbidge (AUS) finished runner-up to the World Title holder, Kelly Slater, who won it back in October.  We will have to wait and see if Slater comes back for a 10th ASP World Title.  I bet he does.  What do you think?

World Surfers Numbered 1-10 respectively:

Kelly Slater (USA), Bede Durbidge (AUS), Taj Burrow (AUS), Joel Parkinson (AUS), C.J. Hobgood (USA), Adrian Buchan (AUS), Adriano de Souza (BRA), Mick Fanning (AUS), Bobby Martinez (USA) Jeremy Flores (FRA).

World Surfers Numbered 11-27 respectively:

Luke Stedman (AUS), Fredrick Patacchia (HAW), Andy Irons (HAW), Chris Ward (USA), Kai Otton (AUS), Tim Reyes (USA), Tom Whitaker (AUS), Kieren Perrow (AUS), Dayyan Neve (AUS), Bruce Irons (HAW), Mikael Picon (FRA), Dane Reynolds (USA), Taylor Knox (USA), Damien Hobgood (USA), Heitor Alves (BRA), Jordy Smith (ZAF) and Ben Dunn (AUS).

Top 15 ASP World Qualifying Series (WQS) surfers in ranked order:

Nathaniel Curran (USA), Chris Davidson (AUS), Michel Bourez (PYF), Gabe Kling (USA), Jihad Khodr (BRA), David Weare (ZAF), Josh Kerr (AUS), Nic Muscroft (AUS), Kekoa Bacalso (HAW), Greg Emslie (ZAF),  Tim Boal (FRA), Dustin Barca (HAW) Tiago Pires (PRT), Phillip MacDonald (AUS) and Drew Courtney (AUS).

3 2009 tour wildcards, as decided by the ASP in conjunction with the surfer’s union:

Injury applicants Dean Morrison (AUS) and Aritz Aranburu (EUK) and WQS NO. 16 Marlon Lipke (DEU).

Complete 2008 standings and event list for the entire 2008 ASP World Surfing Tour

Stop number 4 on the ASP World Tour continues to roll out some amazing heats and amazing upsets. The 3-time world champion, Andy Irons, was ousted by another fellow Hawaiian in Round 3 of the 2008 Globe Pro Fiji. Fredrick Patacchia, the 2005 WCT Rookie of the Year, closed the door on Andy Irons by beating him in Heat 15, 16.34 points to only 5.83.

The match-up of Round 3 included past ASP World Champions Mark Occhilupo and 8 time world champ, Kelly Slater. Even though Occy officially retired last year, he entered this contest as a wildcard. Occy was downed by Kelly Slater in Heat 8. Now Slater will match up with the defending Globe Pro Fiji champion Damien Hobgood in Round 4. With the contest swell dying and some lay days ahead, the 2008 Globe Pro Fiji is finished for today.

Check the current status of the Globe Pro Fiji