Perfect ride in Round 4 heat helps John John Florence to secure Volcom Fiji Pro Quarter-final spot
Hawaii’s John John Florence continued his excellent run of form to walk away with top honours from the opening heat of Volcom Fiji Pro’s no-elimination Round 4 that went down at the alternate event venue of Restaurants in Tavarua, Fiji, on Saturday, June
9.
America’s Damien Hobgood finished in second place, whereas Australia’s Taj Burrow continued to face an issue with his consistency and had to settle for a third-place finish.
The win in Round 4 served to carry Florence straight into the Quarter-finals, whereas his two rivals were forced to make a trip into the relegation Round 5 to have another shot in making it into the next stage at the fourth of ten stops on the 2012 Association
of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Championship Tour.
The draining four-to-six foot barrels on offer at the secondary event site were proving to be a perfect canvas for the world’s best surfers to entertain the crowd through the exhibition of exquisite skills and memorable performances. Though not as huge as
the waves at Cloudbreak, the waves carried sufficient juice to tempt the surfers into going all out during their battles.
The first heat of Round 4 pitted Florence against Hobgood and Burrow in a three-man battle for a direct spot into the Quarter-finals.
Florence continued to make his ASP Dream Tour a memorable one through yet another phenomenal performance. The young Hawaiian powerhouse displayed his affinity with big waves, locking a perfect 10 barrel in the opening minutes of the heat to leave the crowd
breathless. He went on to add an additional 3.17 points to his account halfway through the heat to reach a heat-total of 13.17 points. The score received no serious challenge and thus carried him to victory and hence into the quarter-finals. Currently sitting
fifth on the ASP World Title rankings, every strong result carried Florence closer to his dream of clinching the prestigious honours.
“I didn’t have the best heat but I had that one really good wave,” Florence said. “The world title is always on your mind if you’re on this tour. I’ve thought about it, but usually just focus on the heat in front of me.”
Hobgood had to settle for a second-place finish after scoring a 5.17 and 6.77 off his best-two waves for a heat-total of 11.94 points, whereas Burrow continued to struggle with his consistency and only managed to reach a heat-total of 9.13 points. Both the
surfers got relegated to the fifth round to surf again for a place in the quarter-finals.
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