After the battles that went down in the Round 5 heats of the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast, the final between Kelly Slater and defending Champ Taj Burrow was a bit of a fizzler. It wasn’t the fault of either surfer, but more the junky, ripped up Snapper surf.
Slater jumped in first with optimism on a smaller wave, threw a little frontside air, and then stalled into a perfect, though tiny snapper barrel. It was a classic example of how Kelly seems to bend waves to his will. He didn’t have the same power over the judges, however, and they gave him a 5.0 in what could turn out to be one of the best 5 point waves in ASP finals history.
With 14 minutes to go the heat basically blew up in both surfer’s faces. Slater and Burrow fell on wave after wave. It almost became comical. Kelly railed out on a drop. Then Taj would get caught up in the white water or fall off on a simple bottom turn.
Follow the jump for the rest of the story. . .
Taj tried to answer back, but after eight waves he could do nothing better than 3.0. Though he finally got one good wave in the last five minutes (a 7.17 and the heat’s highest scoring wave) it left him 1.03 points behind Slater’s double fives, and handed Kelly his 46th ASP Elite Tour win.
On the awards platform Taj Burrow almost apologized for the final. “It’s a bummer the waves didn’t hang it there,” Taj said. “That was pretty sloppy there at the end. I was blown away. I couldn’t even better a 3. Hats off to Kelly. He was able to build a little house and it worked.”
Kelly knew something wasn’t right, especially when one of event’s best performers had so much trouble.”Taj was a stand out and blew up at this event and I knew at a certain point he would have to stop getting 9s,” Kelly said. “I picked just the right heat.”
“I’m having a lot of fun,” Slater said of winning a record third Quiksilver Pro. “Getting to surf Snapper by yourself is great. And getting to surf a contest and one of these little things [looking to the trophy] is a bonus.”
When asked if he was going to commit to an 11th world title campaign all Slater would say is, “I’m a guy.”
And it’s true. But if things keep going this way, Ke11y could wrap up the 2011 title before he even knows it.
Chick here to watch the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast heats on demand.
ASP Press Release Below__________
10X ASP World Champ Kelly Slater Claims 46th Elite Tour Win at Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast
SNAPPER ROCKS, Queensland/Australia (Wednesday, March 9, 2011) – Reigning 10-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA), 39, has secured his 46th elite tour win today, defeating defending event champion Taj Burrow (AUS), 32, to claim the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast presented by Land Rover.
The opening event of the 2011 ASP World Title season, the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast showcased the incredible depth of talent in the current ASP Top 34, but the victory went to the iconic Floridian.
Slater sprung to life on the final day of competition, posting his top results en route to the Final against Burrow. Slater slowly built upon his scores in his bout against the Australian and his refined strategy proved to be enough to earn the Floridian the 2011 Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast crown.
“I’m having a lot of fun,” Slater said. “It’s pretty easy. You go out and surf Snapper by yourself, it’s pretty fun. To get to surf a contest is a bonus. I’d like to thank my girlfriend and everyone at Quiksilver for throwing the event. Everyone loves this event because the waves are so fun. I don’t think I’m the only one that thought Taj was the standout of the event. At some point had to stop getting 9s and I just picked the right heat.”
Burrow, who was arguably the form surfer throughout the entirety of the event, went on an absolute rampage on the final day of competition to oust American Brett Simpson (USA), 26, in the Quarterfinals and dangerous South African Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, in the Semifinals, but fell just short of the score needed to surpass Slater for the victory in the back-half of their duel, finishing runner-up overall.
“I’m excited about the tour for 2011,” Burrow said. “It was a fun event and it’s just a bummer the waves didn’t hang in there at the end. I couldn’t better a 3. Hats off to Kelly, he built a house and it worked. I’d just like to thank everyone that organized the contest, it was awesome.”
Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, 2010 ASP World Runner-Up, surfed with style, punch and bite throughout the duration of the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast, securing exciting last-minute victories over Joel Parkinson (AUS), 29, and Alejo Muniz (BRA), 21, to advance through to the Semifinals. However, the big South African was unable to overtake Burrow in a repeat of last season’s Final.
“It’s disappointing when everything seems to be going well and the surf doesn’t cooperate,” Smith said. “Taj (Burrow) surfed amazing though and it’s still a good start for me. I’m looking forward to the next event and I’ll just put my head down and work hard until then.”
Tiago Pires (PRT), 30, who finished No. 26 on the 2010 ASP World Title season, went on a charge at the opening event of 2011, only falling to Slater’s deadly form in the Semifinals.
“That was a very tough heat,” Pires said. “The waves are kind of tricky. They are not as perfect as they were in the heat before. I think I was looking for barrels too much and they didn’t happen. I only got one barrel and I got shut down on priority. They are all really good surfers. Every heat is tough and each one has its own story. I’m just here to do my best surfing.”
Highlights from the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast will be available via http://www.quiksilverpro.com.au
The next stop on the 2011 ASP World Title season will be the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach presented by Ford Ranger from April 19 – 30, 2011.
For more information, log onto www.aspworldtour.com
QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST FINAL MATCH-UPS:
1 – Kelly Slater (USA) 11.20
2 – Taj Burrow (AUS) 10.17
QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST SEMIFINAL MATCH-UPS:
SF 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 16.77 def. Tiago Pires (PRT) 8.20
SF 2: Taj Burrow (AUS) 17.56 def. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 11.40
QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 15.40 def. Dusty Payne (HAW) 9.06
QF 2: Tiago Pires (PRT) 14.64 def. Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 14.40
QF 3: Taj Burrow (AUS) 17.30 def. Brett Simpson (USA) 11.60
QF 4: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 13.03 def. Alejo Muniz (BRA) 9.95
ASP WORLD TITLE TOP 5 (After Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast):
1. Kelly Slater (USA) 10,000 points
2. Taj Burrow (AUS) 8,000 points
3. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 6,500 points
3. Tiago Pires (PRT) 6,500 points
5. Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 5,200 points
5. Brett Simpson (USA) 5,200 points
5. Dusty Payne (HAW) 5,200 points
5. Alejo Muniz (BRA) 5,200 points
