Dusty Payne downs Michel Bourez and Patrick Gudauskas in Round 1 of Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay
The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour action continued at the coastline of Jeffreys Bay in South Africa with the 11th heat of Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay on Friday, July 15.
Hawaii’s Dusty Payne dominated the heat with his exceptional performance to clinch top honours and secure a place in the third round of the event. French Polynesia’s Michel Bourez finished in second position, while America’s Patrick Gudauskas rounded out
the third position. Both the second and third place finishers were relegated to the sudden-death Round 2, which they would have to survive in order to stay alive in the competition.
The event site of the current ASP World Tour event was renowned for offering one of the best surfing conditions in the world. However, the classical Jeffreys Bay waves were yet to grace the event, forcing the organisers to keep the contest running in passable
conditions instead of ideal.
Despite the testing conditions and infrequent three-to four foot waves, Hawaii’s Payne managed to show off his surfing prowess and steal the show with his skills and style. He had been incepted in the elite ASP World Tour just last month and was already
showing signs of greatness after one year at Jeffreys Bay.
As the heat kicked off, Payne found a good wave in the beginning and threw down a string of forehand manoeuvres to score 8.00 off it to earn a huge lead over his two rivals. He soon added another 8.03 to his account with yet another combination of exciting
tricks and move to a two-wave total of 16.03 points. Neither of his two rivals, Bourez and Gudauskas, even came close to the performance of the rampaging Hawaiian, allowing him to clinch a comfortable.
Talking to a reporter after the heat, Payne said, “It was tricky out there this afternoon, but when the good ones come through, they’re still really rippable. Fortunately, I got that good one at the beginning and that set the pace for me in the heat. Stoked
to be back in Jeffreys again and hope we can get some solid surf here in the next few days.”
French Polynesia, Bourez, got off to a poor start and only managed to add a 1.50 to his account. However, he made a charge in the final minutes of the heat to collect 7.60 off a heat. He finished with a heat-total of 9.10 points and had to settle for second
place.
America’s Gudauskas, who recently added a ASP Prime event title to his name by triumphing in Mr. Price Pro Ballito, failed to impress in his latest ASP World Tour event campaign’s first round. Collecting a 4.10 and 4.67 off his two best waves, he finished
with a two-wave total of 8.77 points for third place. However, all was not lost as a good performance in Round 2 would get him back in the race for the event title.
For more updates on Round 1 of Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay, stay tuned to bettor.com
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