Damien Hobgood prevails over Jadson Andre to enter Round 4 of Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay
America’s Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour veteran, Damien Hobgood, made his way into the fourth round of Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay after prevailing over Brazil’s Jadson Andre in a nail-biting Round 3 battle at Jeffreys Bay in South
Africa on Saturday, July 23.
Tasting defeat at the hands of the American surfer in the second heat of the day, Andre has been eliminated from the competition, much to the dismay of his Brazilian fans.
The contestable swell at the coastline of Jeffreys Bay had come as a real relief for the event organisers as the competition was down to its last two days of waiting period. Things would have become quite complicated had the event failed to resume today.
With three-to-five foot waves at hand, the Round 3 continued with the second heat, pitting America’s Hobgood against Brazil’s Andre in a battle for survival.
While the 21-year-old Andre had gotten off to a great start at the latest stop of ASP World Tour, Hobgood had a somewhat shaky start, losing in the first round to Australia’s ASP rookie, Julian Wilson. However, he had bounced back strongly in Round 2 to
make his way into the third round confidently.
As the third round battle commenced between the two surfers, Hobgood took the lead by locking a wave to earn 4.93 points in the opening minutes of the heat. Andre responded with a 3.67-point wave to narrow the gap and ease some pressure.
The Brazilian surfer soon added another 6.00 to his account to move to a two-wave total of 9.67 points, leaving his rival in need of 4.74 for victory. After some patient hunting, Hobgood eventually found the wave that he was searching for and moved past
his rival’s score with a 5.70-point wave to finish with a heat-total of 10.63.
Hobgood, currently No. 17 on ASP World Tour rankings, was able to survive his heat against Andre, ASP World No. 12, even though his opponent had been exhibiting a much better form throughout the current season. This would have definitely given the ASP World
Tour veteran a huge confidence boost as he makes his way to the fourth round to face his next challenge.
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