The Surf Blog Spot

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

Chris Ward, Kelly Slater and Pipeline Master Gerry Lopez

Kelly Slater has Mastered the Banzai Pipeline once again.

Nine-time ASP World Champion, Kelly Slater, just won the 2008 Billabong Pro Pipeline Masters a record sixth time.  This victory was Slater’s sixth tour event win of the 11 event 2008 ASP world tour.  What a great accomplishment for Slater!

The 2008 ASP World Tour has been a dream season for Kelly Slater.  Not only did he set another surfing record this year with his 9th ASP World Title, but he also won 6 out of the 11 ASP Tour events.  Slater clinched the 2008 ASP World Surfing Title back in October at the Billabong Pro Mundaka.  He could have opted out of the Billabong Pro Pipeline Masters event and ended his tour back in Spain.  However, I do not think Slater wanted to end his dream tour without taking a crack at the Pipeline event he has won 5 times and did not want to disappoint his fans. 

Slater has made the Pipeline Masters final 10 out of his last 17 times he entered it.  He won the event in 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1999 and again in 2008.  Ironically enough, Slater’s 9th win comes 9 years after his last Pipeline win.  Plus, this year Slater won his 9th ASP World Title.  I guess Slater’s lucky number in 2008 was the number 9.

Do not forget about the 2008 Billabong Pro Pipeline Masters Triple Crown of Surfing.  The final rounds of the Pipeline Masters surf competition conclude today.  

A new Pipeline Master will be crowned after the final today, as well as, a Vans Triple Crown of Surfing Champion. The champion should be crowned around 2pm, local Hawaiian time.  The race for the Triple Crown is between three Australians: Joel Parkinson, Tom Whitaker and 2007 Triple Crown Champ Bede Durbidge.

Look for Kelly Slater to make it into the finals!  He is killing it right now in the quarter finals against North Shore local, Jamie O’Brien.

More coverage and live action:  http://billabong.wetsand.com/ 

ASP website:  http://www.aspworldtour.com/2008/

The ASP has their new 2009 global surfing schedule. Find out where your favorite surfers will be surfing in 2009!

There have been some changes to the 2009 ASP surfing format and some location changes. The 2009 ASP Surfing Tour will start in Australia on February 28 and the season will end on Hawaii’s North Shore around the middle of December. One notable event stop not on the 2009 ASP contest lineup is the Tavarua, Fiji Globe Pro. The nine time ASP winner, Kelly Slater, has owned this contest and if he decides to surf the 2009 season, he will definitely miss Fiji. Fijians, ASP surfers and ASP followers will bypass the famous surf breaks of Fiji. The most famous spots like Restaurants and Cloudbreak will surely be missed. Read more……

Find all the 2009 ASP Tour schedules

The 2008 Hang Loose Santa Catarina Pro starts October 28. The event is jam packed with local Brazilian surfers and only some of the top 45 ASP pro surfers. Some top names have opted out of this years Santa Catarina Pro. Some missing notables include 9-time world champion Kelly Slater, World #3 Joel Parkinson, 3-time world champion Andy Irons, his brother Bruce Irons, 2-time defending Santa Catarina Pro winner Mick Fanning, Bobby Martinez, and Luke Munro.

The ASP World Tour #2, Taj Burrow, has been very consistent in Brazil. He won 3 of his ASP World Tour career events in Brazil and looks to add a fourth one. With so many top ASP surfers out of this years competition, Taj Burrow will surf against the best Brazilian talent.

Live Coverage

ASP World Tour

Kelly Slater has already won the 2008 ASP World Surfing Tour Title, but there are still 2 surfing events left on the surfing world tour.  The race for the top 10 ASP World Tour rankings is still up for grabs.  There are 6 Australians in top 10 contention.  Taj Burrow, Joel Parkinson, and Bede Durbidge are battling it out for the top 3 spots after 2008 title holder, Kelly Slater.  There is only 1 Brazilian (Adriano de Souza) in the top 10 rankings and look for him to step up his sufing in the next contest.  Adriano will be surfing in his “backyard.”

The next ASP Tour surf stop takes place at the Hang Loose Pro in Santa Catarina, Brazil.  Adriano de Souza’s home turf is Brazil and he is from Sao Paulo, Brazil.  Sao Paulo is two states above Santa Catarina and both states offer a long coastline of surf spots.  Adriano is “Brazil’s Favorite Son” and he has gained significant recognition on this years ASP World Tour.  He has already earned $101,000 on the 2008 ASP tour, compared to Kelly Slater’s tour earnings of $185,100.  One of Adriano’s fellow Brazilians, Bruno Santos, won the 2008 Billabong Pro Teahupoo, Tahiti.  Bruno Santos won the event as a wildcard and had to surf his way through the Von Zipper Trials.  He eventually made it into the main draw of the 2008 Billabong Pro Tahiti and defeated local Tahitian, Manoa Drollet.

I have not been to Brazil yet, but if anybody has surfed this area or visited this area, please comment on this blog and talk about your experiences.  Thanks!

Look for Adriano de Souza to make some surfing noise on the ASP World Tour stop #10.

The Hang Loose Pro Santa Catarina, Brazil takes place October 28 - November 5, 2008.

CJ Hobgood beat fellow surfer Joel Parkinson at the 2008 Billabong Pro Mundaka, Spain.  This was stop number 9 on the 11 event ASP Tour.  Who will make it to the top 10? Second place? Third place? 

There are 3 Australian surfers battling it out for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place in the overall ASP Tour standings.  The next 2 events will be fun ones to watch.  Next up is the Hang Loose Santa Catarina Pro in Santa-Catarina, Brazil.  Then the whole 2008 ASP season concludes at the Billabong Pipeline Masters and the Banzai Pipeline, Oahu-Hawaii.  Pipeline is where second and third place could be decided.

 Billabong Pro Mundaka Final Results:
Final: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 18.50 def. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 15.83

Billabong Pro Mundaka Semifinal Heat Results:
Heat 1: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 17.80 def. Adrian Buchan (AUS) 14.50
Heat 2: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 14.66 def. Luke Stedman (AUS) 6.70

ASP World Tour Top 10 after Stop No. 9 of 11 – Billabong Pro Mundaka
Kelly Slater (USA) 8042 points
Taj Burrow (AUS) 6324 points
Joel Parkinson (AUS) 6180 points
Bede Durbidge (AUS) 5990 points
Adriano de Souza (BRA) 5748 points
C.J. Hobgood (USA) 5760 points
Adrian Buchan (AUS) 5730 points
Mick Fanning (AUS) 5310 points
Bobby Martinez (USA) 5282 points
Luke Stedman (AUS) 4696 points

Kelly Slater Wins Number 9

Slater only needed a ninth place finish to wrap up the 2008 ASP surfing season.  Kelly Slater has done it again.  Or should I say, he has done it 9 times again.  Slater won his 9th ASP World Surfing Title at the Billabong Pro Mundaka, Spain.  That is better than Lance Armstrong. He only needed to advance past round 3 of competition and that he did.  He ended up beating local Basque surfer Eneko Acero with a combined score of 14.96 vs. 10.00.  Then Tom Whitaker (AUS) knocked Kelly Slater (USA) out of the Billabong Pro Mundaka contest with a perfect 10 and an 8.00 during Heat #4 of Round 4.  In 2006, Slater won his 8th world title at this same surf spot.  There are only 2 ASP surfing events left in the 2008 season.  Who will come in second? Third?

The event could finish Saturday with the quarterfinals already decided.

Round 4 Billabong Pro Mundaka Results:
Heat 1: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 17.27 def. Mick Campbell (AUS) 16.43
Heat 2: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 16.00 def. Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 13.73
Heat 3: Adrian Buchan (AUS) 14.50 def. Tiago Pires (PRT) 5.83
Heat 4: Tom Whitaker (AUS) 18.00 def. Kelly Slater (USA) 12.43
Heat 5: Taj Burrow (AUS) 13.84 def. Taylor Knox (USA) 11.17
Heat 6: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 15.50 def. Mikael Picon (FRA) 9.50
Heat 7: Bede Durbidge (AUS) 14.94 def. Kieren Perrow (AUS) 8.80
Heat 8: Luke Stedman (AUS) 15.00 def. Bobby Martinez (USA) 8.63

Upcoming Billabong Pro Mundaka Quarterfinal Heat Match-Ups:
Heat 1: Adriano de Souza (BRA) vs. Joel Parkinson (AUS)
Heat 2: Adrian Buchan (AUS) vs. Tom Whitaker (AUS)
Heat 3: Taj Burrow (AUS) vs. C.J. Hobgood (USA)
Heat 4: Bede Durbidge (AUS) vs. Luke Stedman (AUS)

Kelly Slater will surf against Basque wildcard Eneko Acero in Heat 8.  The contest officials will likely start the contest at 8:30am (local Mundaka time) tomorrow morning.  If Slater wins he will clinch his 9th ASP World Titl.  Contest officials also expect to run overlapping heats again.  With only a certian amount of surfable waves during the contest waiting period, the officials need to complete as many heats as possible.  Thursday had the most heats ever surfed in one day of an ASP surfing event.  Slater and Acero will paddle out an hour and 20-minutes after competition starts Friday.

The contest is LIVE on www.billabongpro.com

September 30 is another lay day for the surf contest.  The surf event directors say there is some nice swell on tap for Thursday/ Friday.  Right now the swell is too small for competition.

Check out the official Billabong Pro Mundaka website:  Billabong Pro Mundaka

Kelly Slater was only 7.31 points away from clinching his 9th ASP World Title.  Adrian Buchan spoiled Slater’s title by beating him in the Quiksilver Pro France final and extending the ASP champion race to Mundaka, Spain.

The 2008 Billabong Pro Mundaka waiting period starts Monday, September 29.  Kelly Slater won his last ASP World Title at Mundaka and Slater only needs to secure a 9th place finish at the Billabong Pro Mundaka to clinch title number 9.  All Slater has to do is advance past Round 3, but if he does not and reigning ASP World Champ Mick Fanning or ASP number 2 Taj Burrow win the event, the title race will move onto Brazil.  Watch the video of Mundaka working it.

Look out for:  Santa Barbara local, Bobby Martinez, has won the Mundaka event the past 2 years.  His 5ht place finish at the 2008 Quiksilver Pro France has moved him into 7th place in the ASP world rankings.

The Billabong Pro Mundaka waiting period runs from Monday, September 29 - Sunday, October 12.  All the surfing news, reporters, and bloggers will be at the event to capture the potential history.  Sorry, but I won’t be ale to make it this year.  Maybe sometime in the future when all the world is reading The Surf Blog Spot.

Catch the event live at www.billabongpro.com/mundaka08

Breaking News!

Adrian Buchan (AUS) has defeated 8-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA), at the 2008 Quiksilver Pro France.  The ASP World Tour title race will have to move onto the next ASP stop, the Billabong Pro Mundaka, Spain.  Slater could have sealed the ASP Tour season with a win, but he will have to wait for his 9th ASP World Title.  This is Adrian Buchan’s first world tour event win.  Adrian beat Kelly Slater 15.73 to 15.16.  What a close finish.  You never know what you are going to get when the world’s best surfers hit the water.

Final Quiksilver Pro France Results:
Final: Adrian Buchan (AUS) 15.74 def. Kelly Slater (USA) 15.16

Semifinal Quiksilver Pro France Results:
Heat 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 14.90 def. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 13.97
Heat 2: Adrian Buchan (AUS) 15.17 def. Damien Hobgood (USA) 8.83

Top 10 ASP World Tour Ratings After The Quiksilver Pro France:
1. Kelly Slater (USA) - 7852 points
2. Taj Burrow (AUS) - 6002 points
3. Bede Durbidge (AUS) – 5668 points
4. Adriano De Souza (BRA) – 5426 points
5. Joel Parkinson (AUS) - 5373 points
6. Mick Fanning (AUS) - 5310 points
7. Bobby Martinez (USA) - 5092 points
8. CJ Hobgood (USA) - 4880 points
9. Adrian Buchan (AUS) - 4719 points
10. Jeremy Flores (FRA) - 4407 points

ASP World Tour Schedule of Events

What do Kelly Slater and a fine wine have in common?  They keep getting better with age.  Yes, Kelly Slater has worked his magic again by winning the 2008 Boost Mobile Pro presented by Hurley.

Slater edged out fellow Ozzie surfer, Taj Burrows, by a score of 18.97 to 18.63.  The final round of the contest concluded in 2-3 foot surf, light onshore winds, and sunny conditions.

Congrats to Kelly Slater and his 5th win of the 2008 ASP World Tour.  What a great accomplishment for the 36 year-old from Cocoa Beach, FL.  Slater also chalked up another title for his championship belt 2 days before his back-to-back Boost Mobile Pro win.  He also won the 2008 SURFER POLL award for being “The People’s Champ.”  The 2008 Surfer Poll award was his 14th Surfer Poll award.  He has only been a professional surfer for 28 years and winning half of the awards is a great accomplishment and a pretty high benchmark. 

Finals Results:
Kelly Slater (USA) 18.97, Taj Burrows (AUS) 18.63

Semi Final Results:
Semi Final 1: Bede Durbidge (AUS) 15.10, Kelly Slater (USA) 15.67
Semi Final 2: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 16.50, Taj Burrows (AUS) 17.33

For more Boost Mobile Pro info log onto the Boost Mobile Pro website

The next stop on the ASP World Tour will tip off at the Boost Mobile Pro presented by Hurley.  The defending Boost Mobile Pro champion and current ASP World Tour points leader, Kelly Slater, will look to defend his title and points lead.

The Dates:  September 7-13

The Location: Trestles, CA - USA

ASP World Tour Schedule

“Somewhere in Indonesia” 

That somewhere will be Stop 6 on the ASP World Tour and will start “somewhere” in Indonesia.  The opening day of the contest will begin July 30 and last until August 10.  Surfing fans are waiting on edge for the exact location.  The event directors and surf forecasters (Surfline) have a spot in mind, but that will not be disclosed until the first heat is underway.  Log onto the Rip Curl Pro Search website to see exactly where Kelly Slater and other top ASP surfers will battle.  Watch the event live on the Rip Curl Pro Seach webcast and see your favorite pictures from the event.

Where do you think the 2008 Rip Curl Pro Search “secret surf spot” will be located? 

Current ASP World Tour Top 10 Surfers
1. Kelly Slater (USA) 5210 points
2. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 3948 points
3. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 3782 points
4. Mick Fanning (AUS) 3753 points
5. Taj Burrow (AUS) 3638 points
6. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 3540 points
7. C.J. Hobgood (USA) 3460 points
8. Andy Irons (HAW) 3338 points
9. Bobby Martinez (USA) 3028 points
10. Adrian Buchan (AUS) 2884 points

ASP Tour Information

ASP Kirstin/ Covered Images

The contest is over and Kelly Slater has won again.  He defeated Mick Fanning in the finals to take home his fourth 2008 ASP tour stop title and his fourth J-Bay title.  Kelly Slater, 36-years-young, brought his “A” game to Supertubes Thursday and showed why he is the best surfer in the world.  He earned his 38th ASP World Tour victory while downing Mick Fanning in 4-6 foot J-Bay.  Winning is Slater’s middle name (not really) and after 14 years on the ASP World Tour, he still has the motivation to win.  He wants to be known as the BEST surfer ever!!

Slater beat Fanning 16.73 to 9.40 in the Billabong finals.  The start of Thursday morning competition was very clean and as the contest continued, the conditions started to deteriorate with the onshore winds.  The officials were worried about the North winds that tend to blow out the faces of J-Bay, which made the final round a little difficult.  But this did not stop Slater and his victory drive.  Slater now has a 1262 point lead on the World number 2 Joel Parkinson and now has such a large lead that his 9th World Title is in his sights.

The next event on the 2008 ASP World Tour remains a mystery. The “Search” event will be held July 30-August 10, 2008, “Somewhere.”

ASP World Tour Ratings after Stop No. 5 – the Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay
1. Kelly Slater (USA)  5210 points
2. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 3948 points
3. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 3782 points
4. Mick Fanning (AUS)  3753 points
5. Taj Burrow (AUS)  3638 points
6. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 3540 points
7. C.J. Hobgood (USA)  3460 points
8. Andy Irons (HAW)  3338 points
9. Bobby Martinez (USA) 3028 points
10.  Adrian Buchan (AUS) 2884 points 

Jeffreys Bay finally got the restart it needed while completing Round 3 and half of Round 4.  The 20 heats of Wednesday’s competition went down in 4 to 6 foot (two meters) surf.  There are only 11 heats of the Billabong Pro left and the 2008 champion should be crowned Thursday.  The contest officials want to conclude the event with world class surf and the lingering swell.  The first heat of Round 4 will be Heat 5 featuring the reigning ASP World Champion Mick Fanning and Hawaiian Bruce Irons.

I thought the Round 3 rematch between Travis Logie and Kelly Slater would bring out some better competition, but Slater annihilated Logie 19.14 to 12.06 in Heat 8 of Round 3.  Next up, Slater will face the current ASP number 4, Adriano de Souza in Quarterfinal 2.

The Last South African Heat Matchup:

Heat 7 of Round 4:  Jordy Smith (ZAF) vs. Taj Burrow (AUS)

Why watch this heat?  Taj Burrow beat Jordy Smith in the 2006 Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay semi-finals when Jordy was surfing the event as a wild-card.  More reasons to watch.  Jordy Smith is the last South African surfer in the event, he will have home field advantage, and will have the local crowd cheering him to victory!

Go to the Billabong Pro website for the live webcast of the event.

Kelly Slater shredding at the 2008 Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay

Bobby Martinez and his 2008 Jeffreys Bay Billabong Pro perfect 10 wave (Round 2 Heat 3)

Round 2 of the 2008 Billabong Pro at Jeffreys Bay is complete.

Swell Forecasts indicate that conditions may be unfavorable for Billabong Pro competition over the weekend. Event officials will meet each morning at 7am, local time, to monitor the waves and make an official call.

Go to the Billabong Pro website to see live action and view heat results www.billabongpro.com

Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay Round 2 Heat Results:

Heat 1: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 16.33 def. Mark Occhilupo (AUS) 9.67
Heat 2: Andy Irons (HAW) 15.17 def. Granger Larsen (HAW) 11.83
Heat 3: Bobby Martinez (USA) 16.33 def. Rudy (jnr) Palmboom (ZAF) 4.33
Heat 4: Adrian Buchan (AUS) 13.07 def. Nic Muscroft (AUS) 11.00
Heat 5: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 15.67 def. Ricky Basnett (ZAF) 11.34
Heat 6: Luke Stedman (AUS) 12.00 def. Daniel Ross (AUS) 7.60
Heat 7: Kai Otton (AUS) 14.27 def. Jihad Khodr (BRA) 13.94
Heat 8: Travis Logie (ZAF) 15.50 def. Timmy Reyes (USA) 12.00
Heat 9: Ben Bourgeois (USA) adv. Pancho Sullivan (HAW) n/s
Heat 10: Dayyan Neve (AUS) 15.66 def. Tiago Pires (PRT) 14.50
Heat 11: Heitor Alves (BRA) 16.66 def. Dane Reynolds (USA) 13.83
Heat 12: Tom Whitaker (AUS) 15.10 def. Rodrigo Dornelles (BRA) 13.70
Heat 13: Mick Campbell (AUS) 15.30 def. Damien Hobgood (USA) 9.50
Heat 14: Luke Munro (AUS) 16.33 def. Ben Dunn (AUS) 12.55
Heat 15: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 18.60 def. Neco Padaratz (BRA) 11.33
Heat 16: Chris Ward (USA) 13.16 def. Mikael Picon (FRA) 12.17

My Round 3 Key Matchups:

Heat 4: Joel Parkinson (AUS) vs. Daniel Wills (AUS)
Heat 5: Adriano de Souza (BRA) vs. Mick Campbell (AUS)
Heat 9: Mick Fanning (AUS) vs. Ben Bourgeois (USA)
Heat 14: Dean Morrison (AUS) vs. Jordy Smith (ZAF)

My Round 3 Key Matchup Revisited:

Heat 8: Kelly Slater (USA) vs. Travis Logie (ZAF)

Look for some payback in this heat.  Travis Logie almost changed the 2005 ASP World Title race by beating Kelly Slater in their heat at the Brazilian Nova Schin Festival.  Then Nathan Hedge stepped-up with a heat win against Andy Irons and ended up sealing the deal for Slater.  That gave Slater his 8th World Title and 2008 looks to be another title year.