Big Debut for SA

GOOD LUCK BRU: Adin Masencamp heads out to surf in his first heat. Photo WSL / Cestari

Clean, glassy 2-3ft lines greeted the surfers at the The US Open of Surfing Huntington Beach presented by Shiseido, and the Covid-19 pandemic appears to have done little to dampen the skillset and fitness of Maree and Masencamp. The latter dominated his heat with a score of 14.17.

He and runner-up Thiago Camarao of Brazil (10.60) go through, but Ian Gouveia (Brazil) and Cooper Chapman (Australia) are eliminated. Maree took 2nd in his heat, just over a point behind Australian Dylan Moffat, but the two impressively knocked out seasoned veterans Wigolly Dantas (Brazil) and Joan Duru (France) to go through.

The other South Africans in the event – Shane Sykes, Slade Prestwich, Dylan Lightfoot and Matthew McGillivray - have yet to surf, with six heats remaining out of 24 heats in Round 1 that cater for the total entry of 96 surfers. With such a large field, the elimination starts immediately, with two surfers brutally dropped from each heat in the first two rounds - the Round of 96 and the Round of 48. In the Round of 24, heats comprise three, with the bottom athlete eliminated. After that, it's one-on-one sudden death heats all the way.

OLD HAT: These kind of tricks are no longer seen as fancy any more. Photo WSL / Morris

Beyrick de Vries has entered the event under the Dutch flag. He has perhaps realised that despite becoming ineligible to surf for South Africa, which also rules out any Olympic hopes, the opportunities afforded him with his Dutch passport are greater than those under the SA flag. Good surfers are rare in the Netherlands, and the speculation is that he will receive a lot more financial support and sponsorship. De Vries was eliminated in Round 1.

The Netherlands was in the global spotlight in June last year when a toxic algae bloom, mixed with an avalanche of foam driven by northeasterly gales, killed five surfers in the surf capital of the country, Scheveningen. Joost Bakker, 30, Sander Dikken, 38, Pim Wuite, 24, Max Verheijen, 22, and Mathijs van Dulst, 23, lost their lives in the freak accident.

Griffin Colapinto (USA) led the way for the local contingent at Huntington Beach with his aerial antics to post a 15.23. The San Clemente, California, surfer finished with a runner-up at the 2018 US Open and finds himself poised for another big showing after putting in the work ahead of this week.

BRAZILIAN STORM WAVE: Small crumbly surf is what Brazilians thrive in. Photo WSL / Morris

Recent Rip Curl WSL Finals contender Conner Coffin (USA) wasn’t to be left out of this week’s show early after scratching his way from fourth-place to a Round 1 Heat 12 win in the back-half of his debut. The Santa Barbara, California, competitor harnessed his ability to rally and also already has success in the Huntington Beach Pier arena to draw from as a Pro Junior.

Rising star Lucca Mesinas (PER) has had a big summer. He surfed at the Olympic Games and the Corona Open Mexico where he got the highest heat total of the opening day (15.34). He has a gold medal from the ISA World Surfing Games and a North America Regional QS title. His powerful backhand attack keeps him on track for a berth on tour. Former CT competitor Caio Ibelli (BRA) is hunting for his chance to rejoin the world’s best and made a good start with a brilliant Round 1 heat. Ibelli’s finished with an air-reverse to secure a 7.33 and 14.83 heat total.

Also making big noise on opening day, was Masencamp's stunning debut, while a pair of South Carolina competitors Cam Richards (USA) and Luke Gordon (USA) took down former CT competitors Connor O’Leary (AUS) and Jesse Mendes (BRA). Former CT competitor Pat Gudauskas (USA) and CT hopeful Jake Marshall (USA) added their name to the California success storyline. And Australians made their presence known with former event runner-up Liam O’Brien and CT competitor Jack Robinson both winning their heats as well.

Watch live on www.WorldSurfLeague.com and YouTube, as well as the free WSL app.

{gallery}SLIDESHOW/2021/september/US-Open-Day-1{/gallery}

Round 1 Results
Heat 1: Jack Robinson (AUS) 12.17 DEF. Barron Mamiya (HAW) 9.93, Kauli Vaast (FRA) 9.40, Rafael Teixeira (BRA) 5.30
Heat 2: Vasco Ribeiro (PRT) 12.93 DEF. Imaikalani deVault (HAW) 12.17, Josh Burke (BRB) 10.07, Taro Watanabe (USA) 7.83
Heat 3: Joshua Moniz (HAW) 10.70 DEF. Shun Murakami (JPN) 9.83, Cody Young (HAW) 9.67, Sebastian Zietz (HAW) 5.40
Heat 4: Mihimana Braye (PYF) 11.17 DEF. Michel Bourez (FRA) 10.50, Mateus Herdy (BRA) 10.30, Marco Giorgi (URY) 9.33
Heat 5: Jake Marshall (USA) 11.80 DEF. Hiroto Ohhara (JPN) 11.56, Ian Crane (USA) 11.13, Marcos Correa (BRA) 10.67
Heat 6: Dylan Moffat (AUS) 11.67 DEF. Jordy Maree (ZAF) 10.60, Wiggolly Dantas (BRA) 8.93, Joan Duru (FRA) 5.60
Heat 7: Patrick Gudauskas (USA) 12.00 DEF. Callum Robson (AUS) 11.54, Ramzi Boukhiam (MAR) 8.66, Shuji Nishi (JPN) 4.76
Heat 8: Sheldon Simkus (AUS) 13.83 DEF. Carlos Munoz (CRI) 12.90, Gatien Delahaye (FRA) 12.17, Miguel Pupo (BRA) 9.60
Heat 9: Alex Ribeiro (BRA) 11.94 DEF. Ezekiel Lau (HAW) 11.04, Eli Hanneman (HAW) 10.46, Jorgann Couzinet (FRA) 8.47
Heat 10: Nolan Rapoza (USA) 13.50 DEF. Kolohe Andino (USA) 12.40, Charly Martin (FRA) 10.43, Reo Inaba (JPN) 10.30
Heat 11: Adin Masencamp (ZAF) 14.17 DEF. Thiago Camarao (BRA) 10.60, Ian Gouveia (BRA) 9.77, Cooper Chapman (AUS) 8.04
Heat 12: Conner Coffin (USA) 13.77 DEF. Alejo Muniz (BRA) 13.17, Jhony Corzo (MEX) 10.74, Kalani Ball (AUS) 8.73
Heat 13: Griffin Colapinto (USA) 15.23 DEF. Billy Stairmand (NZL) 13.37, Luel Felipe (BRA) 11.50, Jackson Baker (AUS) 10.50
Heat 14: Lucca Mesinas (PER) 15.34 DEF. Ruben Vitoria (EUK) 12.57, Jacob Willcox (AUS) 7.90, Oney Anwar (IDN) 7.63
Heat 15: Gaspard Larsonneur (FRA) 14.10 DEF. Rio Waida (IDN) 13.20, Nat Young (USA) 12.50, Michael Rodrigues (BRA) 11.44
Heat 16: Cam Richards (USA) 14.50 DEF. Luke Gordon (USA) 13.07, Jesse Mendes (BRA) 10.67, Connor O'Leary (AUS) 10.34
Heat 17: Caio Ibelli (BRA) 14.83 DEF. Cole Houshmand (USA) 13.10, Miguel Tudela (PER) 10.94, Samuel Pupo (BRA) 10.80
Heat 18: Liam O'Brien (AUS) 13.73 DEF. Lucas Silveira (BRA) 12.63, Keanu Asing (HAW) 10.93, Beyrick De Vries (NLD) 9.37