Watch: Two Waves That Won The Hurley Pro Sunset Beach
In high-performance, six- to eight-foot surf at Sunset Beach, Australians Molly Picklum and Jack Robinson opened the door for just what is possible at the iconic North Shore break with a pair of nine-point rides...that may ultimately change how the best surfers in the world attack the wave.
In her semifinal clash against a resurgent Brisa Hennessy, Picklum hurled herself at a huge section, airdropped to the bottom, and somehow managed to stay on her feet with the whitewater exploding all around her. Powerful and fully committed, she was awarded a 9.67 for the one, big maneuver. Riding the momentum and adrenaline of the moment through the finals, Picklum is now the back-to-back winner at Sunset and sits ranked first in the world.
In his final against Japan's Kanoa Igarashi, Robinson's statement-making 9.87 was a more dynamic ride that featured a barrel out the back, a turn through the mid-section that set him up for another barrel on the inside, finished with a clean, wrapping carve to demonstrate just how in control Robinson was.
"It was a cool wave, almost bending, and I’ve never been tubed twice on the inside here," Robinson described afterwards. "And to have a Final with Kanoa, we’ve grown up together, we’ve been doing this for a long time. It’s a cool history and a lot more to come.”
"Change the game out there!" commented former world champ Joel Parkinson on Robinson's celebratory Instagram post.
Robinson now sits ranked number two in the world behind Hawaii's John John Florence, setting up what could be a fascinating race to both the Olympics in Tahiti this July and the WSL Finals at Lower Trestles in September.
Hawaii's now in the books. The MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal is up next on the Championship Tour schedule. The waiting period kicks off on March 6. In 2023, Robinson finished runner-up in Peniche, while Picklum made the quarterfinals. It feels like they're just getting started this year.
Aussies Sweep Hurley Pro Sunset Beach
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.