Cory Lopez captures the win in Round 1 of Billabong Pro Tahiti – 2011 ASP World Tour
America’s Cory Lopez took top honours in the opening heat of Round 1 at the latest stop on 2011 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour, Billabong Pro Tahiti, that went down at Teahupo’o, Tahiti, on Saturday, August 20.
The 34-year-old Lopez took victory by prevailing over Australia’s Adrian Buchan and Chris Davidson, who finished second and third respectively, securing his place in the third round of the competition.
The first heat of Billabong Pro Tahiti’s Round 1 kicked off under excellent conditions, with a clear weather and clean four to six-foot waves gracing the event site.
As the three-man battle kicked off, it took Buchan just a few minutes to clinch the lead by locking a wave to score 5.17 points off it. Lopez responded within a few minutes with a 6.83-point wave to move ahead on the scoreboard.
The American held on to his lead as the heat-clock ticked away. In the closing minutes of the battle, he locked another wave to showcase some of the tricks in his arsenal, collecting 6.00 points for the effort and moving to a heat-total of 12.83 points.
With the heat in its dying minutes, Buchan made one final desperate effort to try and get past his American rival. He caught a wave to throw off a string of impressive manoeuvres, but only managed to earn 6.30 points. Finishing with a heat-total of 11.47
points, he had no choice but to surrender victory to Lopez.
The third surfer in the three-way battle, Davidson, failed to make any impact in the heat, evidently struggling to find his rhythm. Earning 1.40 and 3.27 points off his two best waves, he finished with a heat-total of 4.67 points to finish in third place.
Lopez, who was replacing his compatriot Dane Reynolds at the current stop of the elite Tour, justified his inclusion in the event with his impressive performance in Round 1.
Buchan and Davidson may have failed to land a win in the first round, but getting relegated to Round 2 stills offers them with an opportunity to extend their life in the competition.
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