SoCal Punchout in Tahiti - The Biggest Surf Competition in California's History

As of writing, we are 30 minutes from the start of the Outerknown Tahiti Pro. The last stop on tour until the championship event at Trestles in California. For those who don’t know the WSL tour structure states that the top 5 ranked surfers in the world, after Tahiti, get an invite to compete for the world title in Trestles. The rest of the field get to watch from the beach or their nicely furnished homes. The current top five feature two Brazilians in Filipe Toledo and Italo Ferreria. Neither is a surprise, and Filipe is so far ahead of the field he could skip Tahiti altogether. Representing Australia is Jack Robinson in second and Ethan Ewing in third. In fifth place is Griffin Colapinto from San Clemente, and on the bubble in sixth, is Kanoa Igarashi from Huntington. This means we have two Californians in the running to bring home the first world title since Tom Curren in 1990.

This could get weird. Griffin and Kanoa have been surfing against each other since they were kids. They have shared countless heats and free surfs. They share the same coach. There’s a high likelihood that they could come up against each other in this competition with the chance to knock the other out of the running. Who would have the upper hand if that happens?

Griffin has obviously had the better year. Being in fifth place, he has had two 1st place finishes in El Salvador and in Portugal. He has surfed out of his mind and has beaten Filipe under pressure in both events. He may be the only one in the top 5 who can compete with Filipe in San Clemente conditions. He is only 1,000 points ahead of Kanoa though. Kanoa has not had a 1st place finish this year. In fact he has had a few melt under pressure moments this year. He lost to two hometown heroes in Mateus Herdy in Rio and old man Manning at Bells for 17th place finishes. But he’s still Kanoa Igarashi and can compete as well as anyone in San Clemente if he can get there.

Barring an injury or some miracle both surfers cannot make the final 5 after Tahiti. California does not have a wave similar to Teahupoo. Most California surfers take years to master a wave like it. Kanoa and Griffin though have spent so much time at Pipe though I don’t expect the wave to be an issue. At this point it will come down to who has the mental fortitude and focus to raise to the occasion. Then can they carry that momentum and power to Trestles to bring home a world title? Can you smell that popcorn?