Tonino Benson and Shaun Joubert power into Round 2 of Billabong Azores Islands Pro – ASP Prime Event
Praia de Santa Barbara in Sao Miguel, Portugal, continued to play host to the ninth Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Prime event of the year during the 21st and 22nd heat in the Round of 96 (Round 1) on Thursday, September
29.
The 21st heat saw Hawaii’s Tonino Benson walk away triumphant to confirm his place in the Round of 48 (Round 2). He was accompanied by Brazil’s Willian Cardoso, who finished in runner-up place to extend his life in the event. Brazil’s Pedro Henrique
and Japan’s Teppei Tajima rounded out the third and fourth positions respectively, getting removed from the contention for the event title as a result.
South Africa’s Shaun Joubert surged into the second round by clinching top honours in the 22nd heat. America’s CJ Hobgood successfully made it into the next round as well by finishing in second place. Australia’s Stephen Walsh and Brent Dorrington
finished in third and fourth places respectively, consequently getting ejected from the competition.
With challenging three-to-four foot waves on offer at the event site, the first round of Billabong Azores Islands Pro continued to cut-off heads as the day progressed. Things were definitely not easy for surfers in the battlefield as they desperately hunted
for good scores to increase their chances of avoiding elimination.
As the 21st heat got underway, the 21-year-old Benson got down to business right away, locking a wave to score 6.83 points off it. A small yet effective hunt allowed him to catch a good-looking wave, which offered him enough juice to unload a
series of impressive tricks. Earning 7.43 points off the wave, he moved to a heat-total of 14.26 points. The score proved sufficient to carry him to victory.
Cardoso also got himself to quite a decent start, taking the difficulty of catching waves into account. Earning 5.67 points off a wave in the opening minutes and later adding another 6.67 points to his account, he finished with a heat-total of 12.34 points
for second place.
Henrique finished in third place after getting to a heat-total of 10.17 points, while Tajima’s disappointing performance for a heat-total of 7.23 points put him in last place. The lacklustre performances by the two surfers led to their elimination from the
competition.
The 22nd heat turned out to be much more intense as compared to the previous heat. The 20-year-old Joubert came up with an outstanding performance during the 30-minute session, though his American rival, Hobgood, did not stop breathing down his
next until late in the heat.
As the heat kicked-off, Joubert went through a series of waves before locking one to pull-off a string of exquisite tricks. The effort allowed him to post an 8.17 on the score-board and set things up for a threatening two-wave total. He successfully added
an additional 7.00 points to his account to reach a heat-total of 15.17 points.
Hobgood had no intention of letting his South African rival walk away with the win without putting up a fight. Collecting 6.50 points off his first business-wave, the American went on to add an 8.00 to his account later in the heat. However, the failure
to improve on his score eventually forced him to settle for runner-up place, which was not a total disappointment as he still advanced through to the next round.
Walsh and Dorrington failed to cope with the demanding condition and only managed to get to a heat-total of 8.40 and 7.43 points, respectively. They were expelled from the competition as a result of their poor performance.
For more updates on Round 1 of Billabong Azores Islands Pro, stay tuned to bettor.com.
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