Marco Fernandez and Tanner Gudauskas emerge triumphant in Round 4 of ASP 4-Star Vans Pier Classic
Brazil’s Marco Fernandez and America’s Tanner Gudauskas made their way through into the fifth round (Round of 32) of the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) 4-Star Vans Pier Classic after claiming top honours in their respective Round 4 (Round of
64) heats that went down at the Huntington Beach Pier in California, America, on Friday, March 30.
Brazil’s Peterson Crisanto and America’s Jason Harris got their place in the next round confirmed as well after securing runner-up place in the seventh and eighth heat respectively.
The crowd gathered at Huntington Beach on Friday got treated to a heavy dose of thrilling action as the local and international surfers took each other in demanding surfing conditions. The lack of scoring opportunities kept the surfers right on their toes
during the course of the heat as they pushed themselves hard to ensure their survival in the event.
Squaring off with his fellow countryman Crisanto, South Africa’s Brandon Jackson and America’s Nils Schweizer in the seventh heat, Fernandez got off to a good start, scoring a 6.33 off his first business-wave in the opening minutes of the heat. In the dying
minutes of the battle, he added an additional 5.67 points to his account to move to a heat-total of 12.00 points. The score turned out to be decisive, carrying him to victory.
Crisanto advanced through into the next heat as well after scoring a 6.20 and 2.70 off his best-two waves to finish with a heat-total of 8.90 points.
Jackson finished in third place with a heat-total of 8.07 points, whereas Schweizer rounded out the bottom-position with a two-wave total of 7.73 points.
The eighth heat of Round 4 saw Gudauskas taking on his compatriot Harris, along with the two Hawaiian surfers Robert Patterson and Nathan Florence in a four-man battle for the Round 5 slot.
Gudauskas got off to a rusty start, struggling to find a decent ride. However, he came across a couple of pretty decent waves in the final minutes of the heat, which he utilised to score a 6.83 and 5.70. The resultant heat-total of 12.53 turned out to be
sufficient to earn him victory.
Harris successfully extended his life in the event as well after finishing with a heat-total of 11.10 points, which included a 4.50 and 6.60-point wave.
Patterson finished third with a heat-total of 8.37 points, whereas Florence was forced to settle for fourth place with a heat-total of 6.60 points. Both the surfers were consequently removed from the contention for the event-title.
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