Watch: Barron Mamiya Scores Perfect Ten To Win Pipe Pro
Saving his best for last, local North Shore hero Barron Mamiya, in the heat of his life against two-time world champion John John Florence at the Pipe Pro, with the waves pumping, proved just how dominant he is on home turf when he scratched into a bomb, stuffed himself deep in the barrel, and somehow managed to come flying out in the channel for a unanimous perfect ten from the judges.
Mamiya would leverage the momentum of the score and go on to win the Pipe Pro for the second Championship Tour victory of the 24-year-old surfer's career. Growing up at Pipeline, watching the contest as a kid, it was a dream come true to, not only be in a final against Florence, but nail a ten-point ride and take the win.
Family, friends and sponsors were on hand to chair Mamiya up the beach after the emotional win. For the effort he will now wear the yellow leader's jersey as the number one ranked surfer in the world as the Championship Tour heads up the Kam Highway to Sunset Beach ... a location Mamiya won in 2022.
But Mamiya wasn't the only surfer to post a 10-point score on finals day. In the semifinals, Australia's Molly Picklum made some history with a 10-pointer of her own. Picklum ultimately finished runner-up to 18-year-old California sensation Caity Simmers. All told, with tens dropping and the waves pumping, it's game on for the 2024 Championship Tour ... also, Mamiya and Simmers could run it back at Sunset, easy ... just saying.
Caity Simmers, Barron Mamiya Win Pipe Pro, New Era Dawns On Championship Tour
Watch: Molly Picklum Scores Perfect 10 In Firing Surf At Pipeline
With more than 25 years of writing about surfing, the ocean and action sports, Jake Howard continues to share stories, profiles and issues that shape the surfing world. One of the premier subject-matter experts in the field today, he's savvy in the ways of print, digital and social media, his breadth of work is expansive. Getting his start writing Surfline surf reports and recording the phone reports for 976-SURF in the late '90s, Jake served as the managing editor for Surfer Magazine in the early 2000s before moving on to launch RedBullSurfing.com and cover surfing for ESPN and the X Games. Over the years, Jake has also enjoyed time behind the edit desk at The Surfer's Journal, as well as the World Surf League, where he worked as the Senior Editor for a number of years. Beyond producing editorial content, Jake has served as a digital marketer and copywriter for iconic surf brands such as Quiksilver, Roxy and Rip Curl. Writing thousands of pages of copy for Surfline, he has deep SEO experience as well. The surf columnist for the San Clemente Times, Jake continues to dedicate himself to the culture and history of the sport through his involvement with the Surfing Heritage and Culture Center in San Clemente.