Tavarua Island, Fiji (Thursday, June 1, 2000). Australian Luke Egan today became the first surfer to win two Quiksilver Pro titles when he defeated Brazilian Guilherme Herdy in their 35-minute final out at Cloudbreak 19.15 to 18.00-points. The victory was his second World Championship Tour (WCT) win for 4 years, after claiming his first back in 1997 during the Quiksilver Pro G-Land (Java, Indonesia), before the event was forced to move locations.
Egan, 30, made the most of the deteriorating conditions during the final heat, electing to catch a few of the smaller waves and build his tally early, while Herdy waited in vain for the less consistent sets. Though the surf was still in the 6-foot range, increased wind made the wave faces very difficult to ride, and Herdy was left needing 5.16-points when the match finished.
Herdy, rated 31st in the world at the end of last year, showed his talent in hollow lefts today defeating Hawaiian Shane Dorian in their quarter-final, American CJ Hobgood in the semi’s, before meeting his match in Egan. The Brazilian is now rated sixth on the current ratings.
Equal third today went to Americans CJ Hobgood and Cory Lopez. Hobgood was unlucky during his semi-final with Herdy, as the waves just seemed to stop during the 30-minute clash.
Lopez, who has been suffering from a sore back the past couple of months, surfed great throughout the event, but similarly to Hobgood, was unable to find the waves he needed during his heat against Egan. Still, the result has pushed him into third position on the ratings.
Current world champion and defending Quiksilver Pro winner Mark Occhilupo was another casualty of Egan today, losing in their quarter-final. The close friends put on a fantastic performance, however, posting the two highest total scores of the entire event, with Egan earning a perfect 10-point ride to win the classic battle 26.70 to 25.25-points.
Troy Brooks, 21, who entered the Quiksilver Pro as a replacement surfer for Great Britain’s Russell Winter, finished fifth today, losing to Lopez in their quarter-final. In what was another great match-up, Brooks posted a 9.80-point ride, the highest of any natural-foot (left foot forward) surfer in the event, though still not enough to advance.
Official Results of Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000:
1st L Egan (Aus) US$15,000
2nd G Herdy (Brz) US$8,000
=3 CJ Hobgood (USA); C Lopez (USA) US$4,000
=5th T Prestage (Aus); S Dorian (Haw); T Brooks (Aus); M Occhilupo (Aus) US$3,000
Current ASP Ratings after Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000 (Top 10):
1st S Garcia (Haw) 3000-points
2nd L Egan (Aus) 2620
3rd C Lopez (USA) 2340
=4th F Padaratz (Brz); Taj Burrow (Aus) 2260
6th G Herdy (Brz) 2160
7th M Occhilupo (Aus) 2140
8th S Dorian (Haw) 2110
9th L Hitchings (Aus) 2080
=10th M Campbell (Aus); S Beschen (USA) 1910
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jesse@aspworldtour.com
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