Jordy Smith and Adrian Buchan advance to Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay semi-finals
The fourth of eleven stops on Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour, Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay, started off with the quarter-finals on Sunday, July 24th, at the coastline of Jeffreys Bay in South Africa.
The first quarter-final pitted the South African force, Jordy Smith, against America’s Damien Hobgood. Smith came up with a remarkable performance during the 30-minute heat to take down his opponent and advance to the semi-finals.
Australia’s Adrian Buchan faced compatriot Julian Wilson in the second quarter-final. Despite a strong fight by Wilson, Buchan still managed to clinch the win and go through to the semi-finals.
Sunday turned out to be yet another day of challenging conditions that had been plaguing the event for the past week, save Saturday. However, the three-to-four foot waves were still very contestable and the event organisers had the full intention of wrapping
up the competition under such conditions.
Undaunted by the tough conditions, the 23-year-old Smith continued to remain outstanding during the opening heat on Sunday. Facing the experienced 32-year-old Hobgood at such a crucial stage of the event, the South African kept his cool while hunting for
good waves.
Almost halfway-though the heat, Smith locked a wave to pull off a set of stylish tricks and earned 7.83 points for the effort. He added another 7.27 points to his account off his second business-wave in the closing minutes of the battle, moving to a heat-total
of 15.10 points.
Despite all his experience and the undeniable skills, Hobgood was unable to respond to his rival’s aggression. After a desperate hunt, the American’s best effort consisted of a 3.27 and 5.67-point wave, bringing him to a heat-total of 8.94 points. This weak
response sealed the fate of the heat in Smith’s favour.
The second quarter-final saw the two Australians, Buchan and Wilson, face off against each other once again. They had previously met in Round 4, where the battle had ended in Buchan’s favour. However, Wilson had an excellent Round 5 victory to regain his
confidence and seemed quite prepared to claim vengeance.
As the battle started, the 22-year-old ASP World Tour rookie got off to a great start, catching a wave to earn 7.23 points off it. After a few minutes, he added another 7.67 points to his account and moved to a two-wave total of 14.90 points.
Remaining quite patient throughout the heat, the 28-year-old Buchan made an abrupt charge in the final minutes of the heat to collect a decisive 8.70 and 8.07-point wave, reaching a heat-total of 16.77 points and clinching the win.
For the second time in a row, Wilson had faltered in his battle against Buchan. To add insult to injury, this time the defeat removed him from the competition.
For more updates on the quarter-finals of Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay, stay tuned to bettor.com
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