{"id":12403,"date":"2009-12-12T20:26:05","date_gmt":"2009-12-13T04:26:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/?p=12403"},"modified":"2009-12-12T21:32:51","modified_gmt":"2009-12-13T05:32:51","slug":"pipelines-biggest-day-ever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/?p=12403","title":{"rendered":"Pipeline’s Biggest Day Ever?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Deanm<\/a><\/p>\n

December 12, 2009 was a huge day at the Billabong Pipeline Masters<\/a><\/strong>, but it was about more than the waves. Each round three and four heat had so much riding on it that it felt like a day full of finals. There were so many stories: Fanning\/Parko<\/strong>, Slater<\/strong>, Andy Irons<\/strong>, Bruce Irons<\/strong>, and John J. Florence<\/strong>, the 16 year old who didn’t even hiccup until he met surf strategist Damien Hobgood<\/strong> in heat 2 of round 4. Andy<\/strong> and Bruce Irons<\/strong> both went down in round three (Andy to Damien Hobgood<\/strong> and Bruce to Taj Burrow<\/strong>). Kelly just kept on charging through his heats with the style we remember him having a year ago.<\/p>\n

And then there was the heat between wildcard Gavin Gillette<\/strong>, 23, and world number two Joel Parkinson<\/strong> that set up the biggest news of the day. Gillette beat Parko in heat 15 or round 3 and pushed Mick Fanning<\/strong> into his second ASP world championship title. Playing a pivotal role in the title hunt wasn’t something that had escaped the wildcard.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe thought crossed my mind about 100,000 times that I could have an effect on this year\u2019s World Title in that heat,\u201d Gillette said. \u201cJoel (Parkinson) is one of my all-time favorite surfers and he\u2019s a great guy. We just met up and one of us had to lose, but that\u2019s the way that contest surfing is. Joel knows, he\u2019s been doing this forever.\u201d
\n\"Fanning\"<\/a>Fanning was so fazed by winning the title that he seemed to forget he was even in a contest and paddled out only to get tossed onto the reef. He appeared to pull it back together, but it wasn’t in time to win the heat against Dean Morrison (pictured above). And he was still hazy after being carried up the beach.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just a bit overwhelmed right now and I don\u2019t quite know what to say,\u201d Fanning said. \u201cIt was hard out there. I was trying to get ready for my heat and then Gavin (Gillette) got that one score as I was paddling out and, I don\u2019t know, I just sort of slowed down.\u201d<\/p>\n

We said we were only going to watch a couple early heats, but got sucked in glaze-eyed in front of our computer all day long. And we’re not sorry.<\/p>\n

Follow the jump for full results and releases from the day or click here<\/a><\/strong> for the saucy fresh version from Kid Charlemagne<\/a><\/strong> because he was there, tasting the sweat and breathing in the La Roche-Posay.
\nPIPELINE, Oahu\/Hawaii (Saturday, December 12, 2009) \u2013 Solid six-to-eight foot (2 \u2013 3 metre) barrels detonated along the Pipeline reef today as the Billabong Pipe Masters showcased one of the most dramatic days in surfing history.<\/p>\n

Event No. 10 of 10 on the 2009 ASP World Tour, today\u2019s Billabong Pipe Masters saw the crowning of the 2009 ASP World Champion, a shakeup in Vans Triple Crown (an ASP Specialty Series) as well as a bevy of death-defying and Perfect 10-point rides.<\/p>\n

With the Round 3 elimination of remaining contender Joel Parkinson (AUS), 28, Mick Fanning (AUS), 28, secured his second ASP World Title (having clinched his inaugural crown in 2007).<\/p>\n

\u201cThis title is way more fun,\u201d Fanning said. \u201cI was much more relaxed for this one \u2013 besides the last few days, I was really nervous.\u201d<\/p>\n

A full report on Fanning\u2019s 2009 ASP World Title can be found at www.aspworldtour.com<\/p>\n

Kelly Slater (USA), 37, former nine-time ASP World Champion and defending six-time Billabong Pipe Masters Champion, entered the water today and showed the world that he is still one of the best at the infamous break. The Floridian posted a 19.33 out of 20 in his Round 3 heat before a 17.10 in his Round 4 heat to put himself on track for an unprecedented seventh Pipe Masters title.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019d be amazing to win another event at Pipeline, but I need to win my next heat first,\u201d Slater said. \u201cIt\u2019s the most prestigious event next to the Eddie Aikau. They\u2019re the two events you really want to win. A lot of years, we struggled to get Pipe going, and this year we have had perfect conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n

While falling out of the running for the 2009 ASP World Title before Hawaii, Slater was gracious regarding Fanning\u2019s impressive victory today.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think Mick\u2019s title win today was great,\u201d Slater said. \u201cTalk about a dominant start with Parko and talk about a more dominant finish with Fanning. He\u2019s been winning everything towards the end of the year. That was really a great seesaw battle. To have it stolen from under you like Joel did, it\u2019s got to be pretty disheartening for Joel right now. It was one of those years where we thought it was going to be boring because Joel was on fire and Mick came back.\u201d<\/p>\n

With the 2009 ASP World Title already sealed, several are looking ahead to next season where Slater remains one of the primary candidates for the 2010 crown. However, as ever, the Floridian remains guarded as to his motivations moving forward.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know if being out of this year\u2019s title race motivates me for next year,\u201d Slater said. \u201cI think to start this year I wasn\u2019t really motivated. I think I felt a lot of pressure and maybe I didn\u2019t put myself in the game early on. It really has been my year to experiment with equipment and trying to take my surfing in a way that feels better. I did a lot of work on that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Slater will face sole remaining wildcard Flynn Novak (HAW), 26, in Quarterfinal 2 when competition resumes.<\/p>\n

Gavin Gillette (HAW), 23, wildcard into the Billabong Pipe Masters, will forever be etched into the history books today as the man who finished the 2009 ASP World Title race. Gillette\u2019s show-stopping Pipeline pit in the dying moments of his Round 3 heat netted the young Hawaiian a 9.03 to take the victory and end the title hopes of Parkinson.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe thought crossed my mind about 100,000 times that I could have an effect on this year\u2019s World Title in that heat,\u201d Gillette said. \u201cJoel (Parkinson) is one of my all-time favorite surfers and he\u2019s a great guy. We just met up and one of us had to lose, but that\u2019s the way that contest surfing is. Joel knows, he\u2019s been doing this forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gillette would subsequently fall to Californian phenom Dane Reynolds (USA), 24, in Round 4.<\/p>\n

C.J. Hobgood (USA), 30, collected one of four Perfect 10-point rides today, utilizing his to push past wildcard Shane Dorian (HAW) in Round 3.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was such a perfect wave,\u201d Hobgood said. \u201cLucky for me Shane (Dorian) and I didn\u2019t have priority, so we were pushing each other deep. That wave was just perfect and I just had to stand there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Parkinson\u2019s early elimination opens up the possibility for Hobgood to overtake him in the hunt for the Vans Triple Crown Title.<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess anything is possible,\u201d Hobgood said. \u201cI have won Sunset before. I\u2019m not trying to think too much about it now and still need to make a few more heats. I\u2019d like to see it come down to the end though.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hobgood faces compatriot Dane Reynolds (USA), 24, in Quarterfinal 4 when competition resumes.<\/p>\n

Event organizers will reconvene tomorrow morning at 6:30am to assess conditions for a possible 8am start.<\/p>\n

Surfline, official forecasters for the Billabong Pipe Masters, are calling for conditions to drop slightly but remain clean for tomorrow.<\/p>\n

When competition resumes, up first will be Dean Morrison (AUS), 28, up against Damien Hobgood (USA), 30, in Quarterfinal 1.<\/p>\n

The Billabong Pipe Masters will be webcast LIVE via www.billabongpro.com and www.triplecrownofsurfing.com<\/p>\n

For more information, log onto www.aspworldtour.com<\/p>\n

BILLABONG PIPE MASTERS ROUND 3 RESULTS:
\nHeat 1: Dean Morrison (AUS) 16.67 def. Adrian Buchan (AUS) 6.60
\nHeat 2: Mick Fanning (AUS) 17.57 def. Torrey Meister (HAW) 6.26
\nHeat 3: Damien Hobgood (USA) 15.07 def. Andy Irons (HAW) 6.10
\nHeat 4: John John Florence (HAW) 16.93 def. Bobby Martinez (USA) 15.16
\nHeat 5: Flynn Novak (HAW) 15.50 def. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 14.34
\nHeat 6: Tom Whitaker (AUS) 12.67 def. Michael Picon (FRA) 12.10
\nHeat 7: Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 15.67 def. Chris Ward (USA) 10.66
\nHeat 8: Kelly Slater (USA) 19.33 def. Hank Gaskell (HAW) 14.17
\nHeat 9: Bede Durbidge (AUS) 12.66 def. Liam McNamara (HAW) 0.33
\nHeat 10: Kieren Perrow (AUS) 17.17 def. Roy Powers (HAW) 13.80
\nHeat 11: Taj Burrow (AUS) 12.83 def. Bruce Irons (HAW) 8.67
\nHeat 12: Dayyan Neve (AUS) 15.67 def. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 13.00
\nHeat 13: Phillip MacDonald (AUS) 15.17 def. Taylor Knox (USA) 11.94
\nHeat 14: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 16.33 def. Shane Dorian (HAW) 11.94
\nHeat 15: Gavin Gillette (HAW) 13.36 def. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 10.56
\nHeat 16: Dane Reynolds (USA) 14.20 def. Kekoa Bacalso (HAW) 10.43<\/p>\n

BILLABONG PIPE MASTERS ROUND 4 RESULTS:
\nHeat 1: Dean Morrison (AUS) 16.76 def. Mick Fanning (AUS) 13.16
\nHeat 2: Damien Hobgood (USA) 13.66 def. John John Florence (HAW) 12.00
\nHeat 3: Flynn Novak (HAW) 12.34 def. Tom Whitaker (USA) 7.54
\nHeat 4: Kelly Slater (USA) 17.10 def. Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 14.50
\nHeat 5: Bede Durbidge (AUS) 12.83 def. Kieren Perrow (AUS) 8.50
\nHeat 6: Taj Burrow (AUS) 15.57 def. Dayyan Neve (AUS) 12.23
\nHeat 7: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 15.27 def. Phillip MacDonald (AUS) 5.87
\nHeat 8: Dane Reynolds (USA) 16.50 def. Gavin Gillette (HAW) 14.00<\/p>\n

BILLABONG PIPE MASTERS QUARTERFINAL MATCH-UPS:
\nQF 1: Dean Morrison (AUS) vs. Damien Hobgood (USA)
\nQF 2: Flynn Novak (HAW) vs. Kelly Slater (USA)
\nQF 3: Bede Durbidge (AUS) vs. Taj Burrow (AUS)
\nQF 4: C.J. Hobgood (USA) vs. Dane Reynolds (USA)<\/p>\n

Mick Fanning Claims Second ASP World Title at the Banzai Pipeline<\/strong><\/p>\n

PIPELINE, Oahu\/Hawaii (Saturday, December 12, 2009) \u2013 Mick Fanning (AUS), 28, has been crowned the 2009 ASP World Champion, following a stunning performance at the Banzai Pipeline today.<\/p>\n

Heading into the final stop of the 2009 ASP World Tour season, Fanning held the ASP ratings\u2019 lead over fellow Gold Coast surfer Joel Parkinson (AUS), 28, and with Parkinson\u2019s Round 3 exit in today\u2019s Billabong Pipe Masters at the hands of wildcard Gavin Gillette (HAW), 23, Fanning secured his second ASP World Title.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just a bit overwhelmed right now and I don\u2019t quite know what to say,\u201d Fanning said. \u201cIt was hard out there. I was trying to get ready for my heat and then Gavin (Gillette) got that one score as I was paddling out and, I don\u2019t know, I just sort of slowed down.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the first time since 2003, the ASP World Title came down to the final event of the season at the Billabong Pipe Masters.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis title is way more fun,\u201d Fanning said. \u201cI was much more relaxed for this one \u2013 besides the last few days, I was really nervous.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 2009 ASP World Tour season will go down in history as one of the most dramatic, with Parkinson winning three of the first five events before Fanning rallied in the latter half of the season to overtake his good friend.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew I was surfing well,\u201d Fanning said. \u201cIt was just a matter of getting that result. I knew it was going to turn around sooner or later. I don\u2019t know, it\u2019s weird the way the world works.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fanning\u2019s 2009 ASP World Tour results are as follows:<\/p>\n

Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast: Equal 3rd
\nRip Curl Pro Bells Beach: Equal 5th
\nBillabong Pro Teahupoo: Equal 9th
\nHang Loose Santa Catarina Pro: Equal 5th
\nBillabong Pro Jeffreys Bay: Equal 17th
\nHurley Pro Trestles: WINNER
\nQuiksilver Pro France: WINNER
\nBillabong Pro Mundaka: Equal 9th
\nRip Curl Pro Search: WINNER
\nBillabong Pipeline Masters: Equal 9th<\/p>\n

In the end, and reminiscent of Fanning\u2019s 2007 ASP World Title (clinched in Brazil), the lightning-fast natural-footer was in the water with Parkinson (in between heats) as the scene unfolded. The two lifelong friends embraced, exchanged words and paddled in separate directions.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe just sort of sat there and hugged and chatted about what\u2019s happened over the last few days and how nervous we both were,\u201d Fanning said. \u201cIt was hard to watch what happened to him this year. He had such a stranglehold on the tour and then he had that ankle injury, so as a friend it was hard to watch that. If I wasn\u2019t in the race I would have been gunning for Joel for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

For securing the 2009 ASP World Title, Fanning has also been awarded and extra $50,000 from the Vans Triple Threat bonus package.<\/p>\n

While the 2009 ASP World Title has been decided, the 2009 ASP World Tour season is far from over with one more day of competition remaining at the Billabong Pipe Masters.<\/p>\n

Following his clinching of the 2009 ASP World Title, Fanning fell to Dean Morrison (AUS), 28, in the opening heat of Round 4.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

December 12, 2009 was a huge day at the Billabong Pipeline Masters, but it was about more than the waves. Each round three and four heat had so much riding on it that it felt like a day full of finals. There were so many stories: Fanning\/Parko, Slater, Andy Irons, Bruce Irons, and John J. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12403"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12403"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12403\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12422,"href":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12403\/revisions\/12422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.boardistan.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}