The Hawaiian talent continue to dominate in Round 4 of the 2011 Billabong Pipe Masters
The final stop of the 2011 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour and the last leg of Vans Triple Crown of Surfing series, Billabong Pipe Masters, kept the action going at Banzai Pipeline in Oahu, Hawaii, on Friday, December 9, as the Round
4 got underway. The first heat of Round 4 pitted Australia’s Joel Parkinson against Hawaii’s Jamie O’Brien and his compatriot Kalani Chapman, while America’s Kelly Slater squared off with his countryman CJ Hobgood and Hawaii’s John John Florence in the second
heat.
The first heat turned out to be pretty intense as all three surfers put up a determined fight to reach out for the Quarter-Final spot. In the end, however, it was O’Brien who walked away with the win, while Parkinson and Chapman had to surf again in Round
5 due to their second and third-place finish respectively.
Yet another outstanding performance from Florence allowed him to steal the show during the second heat and eventually clinch the win to secure his place in the Quarter-Finals. Slater and Hobgood got relegated to Round 5 after finishing in second and third
place respectively.
With 10-foot barrels on offer at the primary event site, the stage was all set for an epic showdown between the in-form surfers as they fought it out for a place in the Quarter-Final.
Prior to the start of the first heat of Round 4, Parkinson was being considered as a heavy favourite considering his recent form. The Australian did treat the crowd to a few second of thrilling action when he locked a wave to unload a combination of sensational
tricks to post a 9.23 on the score-board, but few seconds of impact turned out to be inadequate. He eventually finished with a heat-total of 12.06 points.
Chapman looked pretty determined during the 40-minute heat as well, but finished behind Parkinson with a heat-total of 12.00 points, which comprised of a 5.00 and 7.00-point wave.
The winning performance was delivered by O’Brien, who pulled off an exquisite 9.60-point wave early in the heat and added an additional 4.33 to his account in the final minutes of the battle, finishing with a heat-total of 13.93 points as a result. The resultant
score served to seal the fate of the battle in his favour.
The second heat featured yet another mind-blowing performance by the 19-year-old Florence, who was proving to be the king of big waves since Round 2. Despite the presence of the 2011 ASP World Champion, Slater, in the heat, the young Hawaiian managed to
steal the show during the 40-minute battle. He posted a 7.67 on the score-board off his first business-wave and soon left the crowd and judges stunned with an incredible perfect-10 wave to finish with a heat-total of 17.67 points.
Slater failed to make much of an impact despite being tipped as the favourite and eventually finished with a heat-total of 8.50 points, which comprised of a 3.83 and 4.67-point wave. Hobgood rounded out the third position after finishing with a heat-total
of 5.43 points, which comprised of a 2.00 and 3.43-point wave.
Both Slater and Hobgood still remained in the competition despite their Round 4 loss, though they now found themselves in a pressure must-win Round 5.
For more updates on Round 4 of the 2011 Billabong Pipe Masters, stay tuned to bettor.com.
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