Matt-Lewis Hewitt and Dion Atkinson survive Round 2 at the Australian Open of Surfing – Surfing News
New Zealand’s Matt-Lewis Hewitt and Australia’s Dion Atkinson won their respective Round 2 (Round of 96) heats of the men’s division at the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) 6-Star Australian Open of Surfing at Manly Beach in New South Wales, Australia,
on Thursday, February 16.
Hewitt’s top finish in the 18th heat carried him through into Round 3 (Round of 48), while America’s Taylor Thorne accompanied him after finishing in runner-up place. Australia’s Tom Whitaker finished third, while his compatriot Nic Muscroft rounded
out the fourth position. Both the surfers got eliminated from the competition as a result.
The 19th heat not only sent Atkinson to the next round, but also extended Peruvian Cristobal De Col’s life in the event. America’s Dillon Perillo and Australia’s Stu Kennedy rounded out the third and fourth place respectively, consequently getting
ejected from the contention for the event title.
Hewitt adjusted quite well to the two-foot waves on offer at the primary event site during the 18th heat. Getting down to business in the opening minutes of the battle, the New Zealander caught his first business-wave to post a 6.43 on the score-board
and backed it up with a 7.43-point wave to finish with a winning heat-total of 13.86 points.
Thorne opened his account with a 6.50-point wave and later added an additional 5.10 to it to finish with a heat-total of 11.60 points. The score proved sufficient to put him in runner-up place and carry him through into the next round.
Whitaker and Muscroft had little luck with the waves during the four-man battle and only managed to get to a heat-total of 10.77 and 8.00 respectively, which led to their elimination from the competition.
The 19th heat featured an intense battle between Atkinson and De Col, with both the surfers fighting tooth and nail to get their hands on first place. The Peruvian surfer took an early lead with a 6.77 off his first business-wave, but Atkinson
surpassed him comfortably with a 7.23-point wave.
In the dying minutes of the heat, De Col took the lead once again by adding a 6.43 to his account, but the joy turned out to be short-lived as Atkinson barely caught a 6.00-point wave to finish ahead of him with a heat-total of 13.23 points. Despite getting
pushed to second place in the final minutes of the heat, De Col accompanied Atkinson into the next round.
Perillo and Kennedy had to make a premature exit from the competition after finishing with a heat-total of 10.90 and 10.54 points respectively.
The surfing action was to continue at Manly Beach with the remaining heats of the Australian Open of Surfing’s Round 2.
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