Fredrick Patacchia and Nat Young exhibit intimidating form in Round 5 of Nike Lowers Pro
Hawaii’s Fredrick Patacchia and America’s Nat Young put on a superb performance in their respective Round 5 (no-loser Round of 24) heats at Nike Lowers Pro, an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) PRIME event, which continued at the renowned point-break of Lower Trestles in San Clemente, California, on Thursday, May 3.
Both the surfers headed into the sixth round (Round of 16) following their Round 4 success while their rivals, which included Ireland's Glenn Hall and Hawaii's Sebastien Zietz, France's Jeremy Flores and Brazil's Tomas Hermes got relegated to the sixth round (Round of 24).
With a huge field of talent surfing talent from around the globe competing for top honours at the primary event site, the crowd anticipated a day full of adrenaline-pumping showdowns and gripping action.
The opening heat of Round 5 did not fail to meet the expectations of the fans as it featured an outstanding performance by Patacchia and his competitors Hall and France’s Jeremy Flores.
The 30-year-old Patacchia dominated the right-handers that appeared during the course of the heat, exhibiting his stylish back-hand prowess while conducting his search for a couple of big scores. Earning a 9.43 off his first business-wave and backing it up with a 7.70-point ride, the Oahu-based surfer finished with a winning heat-total of 17.13 points.
“I think with Lowers, you’ve got to watch it a lot,” Patacchia said after the heat. “It’s constantly changing and I try and get down here a few heats earlier and know what I want to do and have a game-plan.”
Hall moved into the sixth round after finishing with heat-total of 15.03 points, which comprised of a 6.70 and 8.33-point wave.
Flores accompanied Hall into the sixth round finishing in third place with a heat-total of 14.77 points.
The second heat saw the American sensation Young dominate his rivals Zietz and Brazil’s Tomas Hermes during the three-man bout.
Wasted very little time to get down to business, Young fished a 9.00-point ride to move into an early lead and immediately cemented it with an 8.17-point wave to take his heat-total to 17.17 points. The score earned him the win.
Zietz was forced to take a trip to Round 6 after scoring a 6.83 and 7.03 off his best-two waves for a heat-total of 13.86 points.
A heat-total of 13.26 points put Hermes in third place, thus pushing him into the sixth round as well..
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