Mitch Crews and Ezekiel Lau clinch top spot in Round 1 at Reef Hawaiian Pro
Australia’s Mitch Crews and Hawaii’s Ezekiel Lau made the Round 2 (Round of 96) cut at the Reef Hawaiian Pro, first of three events that are part of the 30th anniversary Vans Triple Crown of Surfing, after walking away with the win in their respective
Round 1 (Round of 128) heats that went down at Alii Beach in Oahu, Hawaii, on Friday, November 16, 2012.
Hawaii’s Joshua Moniz successfully extended his life in the event as well after finishing just below Crews in second place during the 15th heat. Peru’s Gabriel Villaran and Brazil’s Caio Ibelli, however, were unable to get into the second round
after finishing in third and fourth place respectively.
The 16th heat ended with Lau advancing to the next round, along with his fellow countryperson Evan Valiere, who finished in second place. America’s Michael Dunphy finished third, while Hawaii’s Shane Beschen had to settle for fourth place. Both
the surfers were consequently eliminated from the competition.
With $250,000 prize purse up for grabs, the talented surfers from 15 countries were all set to give it their all on the second active day of the competition to ensure their survival in the contention for the event title.
The 15th heat saw Crews getting the better of Moniz, Villaran and Ibelli in a four-man battle for the Round 2 spot.
The Australian surfer got off to a firing start, earning a 7.00 off his first business-wave and went on to back it up with a 6.27-point ride, thus finishing with a heat-total of 13.27 points.
Moniz finished in second place with a heat-total of 12.90 points, which included an 8.17 and 4.73-point ride.
Villaran finished third with a heat-total of 12.20 points, while Ibelli had to settle for fourth place after registering a heat-total of 11.40 points.
The final heat of Round 1 saw Lau got off to a superb start, earning a near-perfect 9.40 off his first business-wave and went on to back it up with an ordinary 3.33-point ride, thus finishing with a heat-total of 12.73 points. The score stood up until the
end to earn him the win.
Valiere finished just behind him in second place after registering a heat-total of 11.50 points, which included a 6.67 and 4.83-point ride.
Dunphy finished with a heat-total of 7.06 points in third place, while Beschen had to settle for a heat-total of 6.80 points.
Tags: