Jordy Smith edges past Dane Reynolds in Round 3 of Quiksilver Pro France – 2011 ASP World Tour
The non-stop action continued at the iconic beach-break of La Graviere in France on Sunday, October 9, as South Africa’s Jordy Smith took on USA’s Dane Reynolds in the seventh heat of Quiksilver Pro France’s Round 3 to compete for a place in the fourth round.
If anyone thought that the battle between two of surfing’s extremely talented athletes would be electrifying, they were definitely not disappointed as it turned out to be one of the most intense match-ups of the day. Both surfers put up a remarkable performance,
though Smith managed to clinch top honours in the end to secure a place in Round 4, while removing his opponent, Reynolds, from the contention for the event-title.
The 23-year-old Smith has been making waves in the current season of the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour so far, following one exceptional performance with another quite consistently. He had announced himself as one of the strongest
contender for the World Title right from the beginning and despite missing two events due to an injury, he still held onto a spot in the Top-5 on the ASP World Tour Ranking table.
Travelling to France to resume his elite tour campaign, the South African had gotten off to a solid start and looked to be in as good a form as ever. After passing through Round 1 without a scratch, he stood facing the intimidating Reynolds in the third
round.
Reynolds was competing in his first World Tour event of the year after being plagued by a series of injuries. He was expected to grab this opportunity to make a strong statement and remind everyone why he was among the elite ASP Top 34.
As the seventh heat of Round 3 got under-way, Smith made it apparent almost instantly that he meant business. Locking a wave in the opening minutes of the battle, he pulled off a string of really impressive tricks to post a 7.83 on the score-board, taking
an early advantage over his rival. He soon managed to add another 6.33 points to his account, moving to a heat-total of 14.16 points and setting himself up for a win.
However, Reynolds soon made it clear that he wasn’t going to allow the South African to walk away top honours without a fight. Despite looking rather harmless in the first half of the heat, the American made a charge a little past the half-way stage and
caught a wave to unleash a combination of spectacular tricks, collecting 8.50 points for the effort. Pretty much back in the match, Reynolds was quite comfortably placed to go for the win, but he missed out on the opportunity after failing to get the required
score off his second business-wave. He eventually finished with a heat-total of 13.83 points, conceding victory to Smith due to a mere 0.33-point deficit.
The outcome of the nail-biting contest sent Smith through to the fourth round, while adding Reynolds’s name to the elimination list.
For more updates on Round 3 of Quiksilver Pro France, stay tuned to bettor.com.
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