Damien Hobgood and Jeremy Flores clinch victory in Round 2 at O’Neill Coldwater Classic
America’s Damien Hobgood and France’s Jeremy Flores successfully made their way into the third round at O’Neill Coldwater Classic, the ninth of ten stops on the 2012 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Championship Tour, which continued at the
point-break of Steamer Lane in Santa Cruz, California, on Sunday, November 4, 2012.
Hobgood got the better of Australia’s Josh Kerr in the seventh heat to secure his Round 3 place, bringing the competition to an early end for his rival in the process.
The eighth heat resulted in the ejection of America’s promising young-gun Kolohe Andino after he succumbed to Flores, sending the latter into the next round.
The latest day of the competition saw the heavily-talented surfers struggle because of the conditions and unpredictability of the sea.
The seventh heat pitted Hobgood and Kerr against each other in a man-on-battle for survival. Both the surfers were a little short on confidence after failing to make a solid impact in Round 1, but at the same time were fully aware of just how important it
was to give their 100 percent in their latest heat, as a failure to do so meant elimination from the competition.
As the heat got underway, Hobgood got down to business without wasting a moment, locking a juicy wave in the opening minutes to post a 7.50 on the score-board.
Keeping the momentum going, the American surfer went on to add another 8.00 points to his account, thus moving to a competitive heat-total of 15.50 points.
Kerr put up a determined fight, but his efforts just were not enough to enable him to challenge his rival’s lead. Scoring a 5.17 and 7.77 off his best-two waves, the Australian surfer finished with a heat-total of 12.94 points, thus tasting defeat.
The eighth heat saw Flores taking on Andino in a battle for the Round 3 spot.
As the contest got underway, the Californian young-gun got off to a promising start, managing to post a 6.00 on the score-board just a few minutes into the heat.
He later went on to back it up with a 6.53-point ride, thus reaching a heat-total of 12.53 points.
Flores took his time to get accustomed to the conditions on offer and once he found his rhythm the French surfer got himself in position to ride a juicy wave, reaping an 8.27 off it to get into a perfect position to go for the win.
A 5.20 off his second business-wave allowed him to do just that, carrying him to a heat-total of 13.47 points and thus sealing the fate of the battle in his favour.
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