Julian Wilson and Jordy Smith advance to Round 4 of Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay
The fifth and sixth heat of Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay’s Round 3 went down at the coastline of Jeffreys Bay in South Africa on Saturday, July 23.
The fifth heat saw Australian Julian Wilson prevail over his compatriot Kieren Perrow, quite comfortably to earn his place in the next round, removing his rival from the competition in the process.
The South African force, Jordy Smith continued to assert his excellent form in the sixth heat to down his countryman Travis Logie, in order to secure a place in Round 4.
After a week of disappointment, the event was finally graced by the surfing conditions that Jeffreys Bay is renowned for. With almost six-to-eight foot waves breaking at the coastline, the level and intensity of the competition was expected to be sky high.
The fifth heat pitted Wilson and Perrow against each other in a battle for the coveted Round 4 spot. While the 22-year-old Wilson had the advantage of youthful energy, the 34-year-old Perrow carried way more experience than his young rival. It was difficult
to guess who would be able to get the upper hand during the contest.
However, it soon became clear that Wilson had no intention of letting the experience of his senior get in the way of his victory. The young Australian got off to an amazing start, locking a wave to pull off a series of amazing manoeuvres that sent both the
judges and crowd in awe. The judges-panel unanimously awarded the wave a perfect 10. In the final minutes of the heat, he added another 7.00 to his account to finish with a remarkable heat-total of 17.00 points.
Regardless of his experience and skills, Perrow was unable to stand up to his rival’s onslaught. Collecting a 5.47 and 5.53 off his two best waves, he finished with a heat-total of 11.00 points, consequently forced to surrender victory to Wilson.
After an exciting fifth heat, the third round moved on to the sixth heat, which featured a showdown between the locals, Smith and Logie.
After entering the event as a replacement for America’s Kelly Slater in Round 2, Logie was keen to make the most of the opportunity he was blessed with. However, the 23-year-old Smith was in no mood to go easy on his rival and went on a rampage during the
30-minute heat.
After a series of waves, Smith locked a juicy wave to showcase the stylish tricks in his arsenal and ended up earning an 8.00 from the judges for the effort. He later collected another 8.53 points in the final minutes of the battle to move to a heat-total
of 16.53 points.
It was Logie’s luck that had brought him into the competition, but now it seemed to have bailed on him. Not too many juicy waves came in his direction during the battle and the ones that actually did come his way, he failed to make the most out of them.
He finished with a heat-total of 12.20 points, which comprised of a 6.00 and 6.20-point wave.
With the conditions at Jeffreys Bay remaining consistent as the day progressed, the surfing action continued at the even site with the remaining heats of Round 3.
For more updates on Round 3 of Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay, stay tuned to bettor.com
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