CJ Hobgood downs Jamie O’Brien to secure Round 3 spot at Billabong Pipe Masters
America’s CJ Hobgood was able to extend his life in the Billabong Pipe Masters after getting the better of Hawaii’s Jamie O’Brien in the third heat that went down at Pipeline in Oahu, Hawaii, on Saturday, December 8, 2012.
The battle turned out to be a nail-biting one, with both the surfers putting on an impressive show until the end.
Once the dust settled, however, the American surfer stood victorious, breathing a sigh of relief as he returned to the shore with his place in Round 3 successfully secured.
Both the surfers had gotten off to an impressive start at what is the final stop for both the 2012 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Championship Tour as well as the third and final jewel on the 30th anniversary Vans Triple Crown
of Surfing.
With plenty to gain at the latest on-going surfing competition, the determination and resulting energetic performances delivered by the two surfers hardly came off as surprising.
As both the surfers came across each other in the third heat of Round 2, they were well aware of the fact that only one of them could go through into the next round, with the other to take on the role of a spectator for the rest of the competition.
With neither of them to settle for the second option, an intense battle for survival got underway.
As the heat kicked-off, Hobgood got off to a promising start, wasting very little time to show-off his comfort with the pumping six-to-eight foot waves that were gracing the main event site.
After going through a few average scores, the American surfer locked his first business-wave, a juicy tube, to unload a series of exquisite tricks. The effort earned him an impressive 8.17, thus giving him the lead.
O’Brien had no intention of letting his rival gain an upper-hand and therefore stepped-up, much to the satisfaction of the local crowd.
The Hawaiian talent selected an excellent wave to break-free and successfully grabbed the lead after posting an 8.57 on the score-board.
As the heat continued, O’Brien added an additional 5.00 points to his account, thus getting to a heat-total of 13.57 points.
With hardly any time left in the heat, Hobgood managed to get his hands on a 7.00-point ride, which carried him ahead of his rival to a heat-total of 15.17 points.
As a result, the American surfer got his life extended in the event, while O’Brien got eliminated from the competition.
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