Kelly Slater and Dane Reynolds qualify for quarter-finals at Nike US Open of Surfing
America’s Kelly Slater and his fellow countryperson Dane Reynolds advanced to the quarter-finals at the latest Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Prime event Nike US Open of Surfing after emerging triumphant in their respective Round 8 (Round of
16) heats that went down at Huntington Beach in California, America, on Saturday, August 4.
Slater got the better of Brazil’s Jesse Mendes in the third heat of Round 8 to make his way through into the quarter-finals, removing the latter from the contention for the event title.
The fourth heat saw Reynolds barely defeat his fellow countryperson Nathaniel Curran to secure his place in the quarter-finals, bringing the event to a premature end for his rival.
The two-to-four foot waves breaking at the Huntington Beach Pier presented the top surfers from around the world with an ideal opportunity to put their exquisite skills on exhibition, much to the joy of the huge crowd in attendance.
The third heat pitted the legendary 11-time ASP World Champion Slater against Mendes in a one-on-one battle for the quarter-final spot.
The 40-year-old Florida-based surfer opened his account with a 5.17-point ride and backed it up with a 7.33-point ride to finish with a heat-total of 12.50 points.
Mendes responded with a 6.10-point ride and immediately followed it up with a 5.27-point ride to finish with a heat-total of 11.37 points. The 1.13-point deficit forced him to surrender victory to his rival.
The next heat featured a superb performance by the 26-year-old Reynolds as he took down Curran in a nail-biting heat.
The California-based surfer went down to work early in the heat, posting an 8.23 on the scoreboard off his first business-wave and went on to back it up with an 8.67-point, thus moving to a heat-total of 16.90 points.
Curran put up with a remarkable fight, but just fell short of the required score. He scored a 7.93 off his first business-wave and added an additional 8.77 to his account, thus finishing with a heat-total of 16.70 points.
“I just surf a lot and try it over and over again,” Reynolds said. “When it’s a bad wave you feel less pressure because it’s up to you and you want to push it as hard as you can. I hate when I’m on a good wave and I feel like I need to surf it at 70 percent.
I’d almost rather get a bad wave and try and surf it 150 percent. I’m really excited for the next round. I’ve never beat Kelly and it’ll be a fun challenge.”
The surfing action continued at Huntington Beach with the remaining Round 8 heats of Nike US Open of Surfing.
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