Triple Crown of Surfing
Encyclopedia
The Vans
Triple Crown of Surfing is a Hawaiian specialty series of professional surfing events, offering three events to men and three events to women. For the men, those events are the Reef Hawaiian Pro at Haleiwa Ali'i Beach Park; the O'Neill World Cup of Surfing
at Sunset Beach
; and the Billabong Pipeline Masters
at the Banzai Pipeline
. The women's events are the Vans Hawaiian Pro at Haleiwa Ali'i Beach Park; the Roxy Pro at Sunset Beach; and the Billabong Pro Maui at Honolua Bay, Maui
.
All events, with the exception of the women's Billabong Pro Maui, are staged on the North Shore of Oahu - a coastline world famous in surfing terms for its clockwork winter swells that reach 50 feet in height.
The Vans Triple Crown of Surfing is second only to surfing's world title as it is considered to be the ultimate test of a surfer's ability to master the big waves at three unique venues - each with its own set of challenges for the surfer.
In addition to individual event champions, the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing crowns an overall men's and women's champion each year. This goes to the surfer who has performed best across all three competitions, making them the most proficient big-wave rider in the world.
(Aus)
Winner (women): Stephanie Gilmore
(Aus)
to deny her the wave and the points she needed. This took nothing away from Moore who qualified via a wild card and surfed consistently throughout.
by a slender margin of 0.27 from Brazilian Jihad Khodr. The final day of the event, held on November 22, was marked by dramatically inconsistent surf, typified by the semi-final heats. Despite running consecutively, the first semi-final saw Bourez almost eliminated in a 'barrelfest', despite scoring 9.93 on his best wave. In contrast the second semi saw big names Bede Durbidge
and Joel Parkinson crash out with paltry scores as the sets failed to materialise.
The final on December 1 saw superb surfing from the Australians, especially Nicola Atherton, who knocked out Sofia Mulanovich
and Layne Beachley on the way to the final. The day went to Stephanie Gilmore
who not only won the event but with it, clinched the ASP title for the second consecutive year. She was pushed all the way by Brazilian Silvana Lima who was frustrated after Gilmore scored an excellent righthander in the final minutes.
Many competitors, including Brett Simpson and local veteran and former ASP champ Sunny Garcia
, saw their hopes for ASP World Tour qualification dashed with early elimination, while Reef Hawaiian Pro champ, Michel Bourez and finalists Jihad Khodr and Kekoa Bacalso also crashed out before the quarter finals.
The final was contested in clean, twenty to thirty foot surf, with former ASP World Tour champ Floridan C J Hobgood taking the Cup. Marcus Hickman fell foul of poor wave selection, the Hawaiian finishing third, while Jordy Smith
, who has never finished below the quarter finals in the triple crown, came in fourth after snapping his board and hurting his leg.
The competition now moves to the Banzai Pipeline for the final leg of the triple crown and final event of the ASP World Tour. Hawaiian Dusty Payne is competition leader so far, with C J Hobgood and Joel Parkinson second and third.
Surfing began on 9th Dec, employing a dual heat structure where surfers go head to head, and ended on 12th Dec.
Joel Parkinson became Triple Crown champion after 2009 ASP World Tour champion Kelly Slater
won an unprecedented sixth Pipeline Masters title. Riding a short five foot eleven board, Slater pipped fellow American Chris Ward in a low-scoring final, in what was the duo's eighth head-to-head. Although Slater was always in the lead, a low scoring second wave meant that Ward was always in the frame. However, a late 6.83 from Slater left Ward needing a combination with no time to realistically recover.
This years Triple Crown hopefuls Dusty Payne and CJ Hobgood were eliminated in Round 3, by Parkinson and Evan Valiere respectively.
However, delayed due to poor surf at Honolua, the final day of surfing on 19 December was relocated to Ho'okipa
Beach Park on the other side of Maui. Stephanie Gilmore won an exciting contest against Melanie Bartels to claim her second Billabong Pro Maui and first Triple Crown title. Seven time world champion, Layne Beachley, bowed out of professional surfing with semi-final defeat by Gilmore. Brazilian Silvana Lima lost out to Bartels in the semi-finals but her consolation was taking second place in the ASP women's tour.
Vans
Vans is an American based manufacturer of sneakers, skateboarding shoes, BMX shoes, snowboarding boots and other shoe types.- History :On March 16, 1966, at 704 E. Broadway, in Anaheim, California, brothers Paul Van Doren, James Van Doren, and three other partners opened up their first store...
Triple Crown of Surfing is a Hawaiian specialty series of professional surfing events, offering three events to men and three events to women. For the men, those events are the Reef Hawaiian Pro at Haleiwa Ali'i Beach Park; the O'Neill World Cup of Surfing
O'Neill World Cup of Surfing
The O'Neill World Cup of Surfing is a prestigious event in surfing held annually at Sunset Beach in Hawaii. The event attracts over a hundred elite surfers from around the world. It is the second event of the Triple Crown of Surfing. The first competition was held in 1975. Of the 22 surfers who...
at Sunset Beach
Sunset Beach
- United States :* Sunset Beach , in Cape May, New Jersey* Sunset Beach , in Pupukea, Oahu, Hawaii* Sunset Beach State Recreation Site, in Oregon* Sunset State Beach, near Watsonville, California- Canada :* Sunset Beach, Alberta...
; and the Billabong Pipeline Masters
Billabong Pipeline Masters
The Billabong Pipeline Masters is an event in surfing held annually at Banzai Pipeline in Oahu, Hawaii. It was established in 1970 and attracts the top 45 surfers from the Association of Surfing Professionals as well as 16 surfers who compete in walk on trials. The surfers compete for a share of...
at the Banzai Pipeline
Banzai Pipeline
The Banzai Pipeline, or simply "Pipeline" or "Pipe," is a surf reef break located in Hawaii, off Ehukai Beach Park in Pupukea on O'ahu's North Shore. A reef break is an area in the ocean where waves start to break once they reach the shallows of a reef...
. The women's events are the Vans Hawaiian Pro at Haleiwa Ali'i Beach Park; the Roxy Pro at Sunset Beach; and the Billabong Pro Maui at Honolua Bay, Maui
Maui
The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...
.
All events, with the exception of the women's Billabong Pro Maui, are staged on the North Shore of Oahu - a coastline world famous in surfing terms for its clockwork winter swells that reach 50 feet in height.
The Vans Triple Crown of Surfing is second only to surfing's world title as it is considered to be the ultimate test of a surfer's ability to master the big waves at three unique venues - each with its own set of challenges for the surfer.
In addition to individual event champions, the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing crowns an overall men's and women's champion each year. This goes to the surfer who has performed best across all three competitions, making them the most proficient big-wave rider in the world.
2009 Event
The 2009 Reef Hawaiian Pro (men) and Vans Hawaiian Pro (women) are currently both underway. These are the first legs of the Triple Crown. (last edited 20th Nov)2008 Event
Winner (men): Joel ParkinsonJoel Parkinson
Joel Parkinson is an Australian surfer who competes on the ASP World Tour. Known as Parko, he grew up on the Gold Coast with fellow surfer Mick Fanning...
(Aus)
Winner (women): Stephanie Gilmore
Stephanie Gilmore
Stephanie Louise Gilmore is an Australian professional surfer and four-time world champion on the Women's ASP World Tour . She was born in Murwillumbah, New South Wales, Australia on 29 January 1988 and currently resides in Tweed Heads, New South Wales, Australia.Gilmore's life as a surfer began at...
(Aus)
Women's Reef Hawaiian Pro
The final day of the Reef Hawaiian Pro at Haleiwa Ali'i Beach Park took place on 20 November. Surfers experienced good clean four to five foot waves and a powerful display of Hawaiian teamwork secured a win for youngest ever champ,'super-stoked' 16 year old Carissa Moore. The event was particularly competitive due to the wide open WQS situation this year and when north shore local Coco Ho saw her chances of winning dashed she ensured Moore victory in the final minute by popping an air over Australian Layne BeachleyLayne Beachley
Layne Beachley is a former professional surfer from Manly, Australia. She won the World Championship seven times.-Surfing career:At the age of 16 Beachley became a professional surfer. By the age of 20 she was ranked sixth in the world. Beachley became the Women's ASP World Champion in 1998, and...
to deny her the wave and the points she needed. This took nothing away from Moore who qualified via a wild card and surfed consistently throughout.
Final Heat Scores
| Surfer | Nationality | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Carissa Moore | Hawaii | 14.50 |
| Layne Beachley | Australia | 10.93 |
| Laura Enever | Australia | 9.40 |
| Coco Ho | Hawaii | 4.75 |
Men's Reef Hawaiian Pro
The men's Reef Hawaiian Pro at Haleiwa Ali'i Beach Park was won by Michel Bourez from the French PolynesiaFrench Polynesia
French Polynesia is an overseas country of the French Republic . It is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands, the most famous island being Tahiti in the Society Islands group, which is also the most populous island and the seat of the capital of the territory...
by a slender margin of 0.27 from Brazilian Jihad Khodr. The final day of the event, held on November 22, was marked by dramatically inconsistent surf, typified by the semi-final heats. Despite running consecutively, the first semi-final saw Bourez almost eliminated in a 'barrelfest', despite scoring 9.93 on his best wave. In contrast the second semi saw big names Bede Durbidge
Bede Durbidge
Bede Durbidge is an Australian professional surfer. He is one of the most promising surfers of the ASP World Tour. Durbo, Bej and The White Fijian are his nicknames.-Life:...
and Joel Parkinson crash out with paltry scores as the sets failed to materialise.
Final Heat Scores
| Surfer | Nationality | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Michel Bourez | French Polynesia | 16.77 |
| Jihad Khodr | Brazil | 16.50 |
| Kekoa Bacalso | Hawaii | 15.83 |
| Dusty Payne | Hawaii | 4.67 |
Roxy Pro
The women's Roxy Pro, Sunset Beach took place from 24 November to 1 December. Surfing began Friday 28th but was halted during the stormy conditions on day two.The final on December 1 saw superb surfing from the Australians, especially Nicola Atherton, who knocked out Sofia Mulanovich
Sofia Mulanovich
Sofía Mulánovich Aljovín is a Peruvian surfer. She is the first Peruvian surfer ever to win an Association of Surfing Professionals World Championship Tour event. She is the first South American ever to win the World Title. In 2004, she won three out of the six World Championship Tour events, and...
and Layne Beachley on the way to the final. The day went to Stephanie Gilmore
Stephanie Gilmore
Stephanie Louise Gilmore is an Australian professional surfer and four-time world champion on the Women's ASP World Tour . She was born in Murwillumbah, New South Wales, Australia on 29 January 1988 and currently resides in Tweed Heads, New South Wales, Australia.Gilmore's life as a surfer began at...
who not only won the event but with it, clinched the ASP title for the second consecutive year. She was pushed all the way by Brazilian Silvana Lima who was frustrated after Gilmore scored an excellent righthander in the final minutes.
Final Heat Scores
| Surfer | Nationality | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Stephanie Gilmore | Australia | 15.83 |
| Silvana Lima | Brazil | 14.16 |
| Jessi Miley-Dyer Jessi Miley-Dyer Jessica Candice "Jessi" Miley-Dyer is a professional surfer from New South Wales, Australia. She currently resides in Sydney.... |
Australia | 9.00 |
| Nicola Atherton | Australia | 6.46 |
O'Neill World Cup
The men's O'Neill World Cup, Sunset Beach took place from 24 November to 4 December with surfing beginning on Friday 28th. Sunset consistently provided huge surf, day two being particularly challenging due to stormy conditions.Many competitors, including Brett Simpson and local veteran and former ASP champ Sunny Garcia
Sunny Garcia
Sunny Garcia was born Vincent Sennen Garcia on January 14, 1970 in Mā'ili, on the Westside of Oahu, Hawaii. He grew up in Wai'anae and after leaving school, debuted on the 1986 Gotcha Pro at Sandy Beach, Oahu, beating the 1984 champ Tom Carroll....
, saw their hopes for ASP World Tour qualification dashed with early elimination, while Reef Hawaiian Pro champ, Michel Bourez and finalists Jihad Khodr and Kekoa Bacalso also crashed out before the quarter finals.
The final was contested in clean, twenty to thirty foot surf, with former ASP World Tour champ Floridan C J Hobgood taking the Cup. Marcus Hickman fell foul of poor wave selection, the Hawaiian finishing third, while Jordy Smith
Jordy Smith
Jordan Michael "Jordy" Smith is a South African professional surfer competing on the World Championship Tour . In 2007 Smith won surfing's World Qualifying Series, the second-tier tour which leads to qualification for the WCT....
, who has never finished below the quarter finals in the triple crown, came in fourth after snapping his board and hurting his leg.
The competition now moves to the Banzai Pipeline for the final leg of the triple crown and final event of the ASP World Tour. Hawaiian Dusty Payne is competition leader so far, with C J Hobgood and Joel Parkinson second and third.
Final Heat Scores
| Surfer | Nationality | Points |
|---|---|---|
| C J Hobgood | USA | 15.00 |
| Tom Whitaker | Australia | 12.67 |
| Marcus Hickman | Hawaii | 8.33 |
| Jordy Smith | South Africa | 2.86 |
Pipeline Masters
The men's Billabong Pipeline Masters took place from 8 to 20 December.Surfing began on 9th Dec, employing a dual heat structure where surfers go head to head, and ended on 12th Dec.
Joel Parkinson became Triple Crown champion after 2009 ASP World Tour champion Kelly Slater
Kelly Slater
Robert Kelly Slater is an American professional surfer known for his competitive prowess and style. He has been crowned ASP World Champion a record 11 times, including 5 consecutive titles from 1994–98. He is the youngest and the oldest to win the title...
won an unprecedented sixth Pipeline Masters title. Riding a short five foot eleven board, Slater pipped fellow American Chris Ward in a low-scoring final, in what was the duo's eighth head-to-head. Although Slater was always in the lead, a low scoring second wave meant that Ward was always in the frame. However, a late 6.83 from Slater left Ward needing a combination with no time to realistically recover.
This years Triple Crown hopefuls Dusty Payne and CJ Hobgood were eliminated in Round 3, by Parkinson and Evan Valiere respectively.
Final Heat Scores
| Surfer | Nationality | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Kelly Slater | USA | 14.00 |
| Chris Ward | USA | 7.23 |
Billabong Pro Maui
Surfing commenced on 10 December and progressed quickly up to the quarter-final stage, with 2009 ASP women's champion Stephanie Gilmore, Hawaiian Pro winner Carissa Moore and defending Triple Crown holder Layne Beachley among the qualifiers. Sofia Mulanovich was a noticeable early casualty after losing out to Moore.However, delayed due to poor surf at Honolua, the final day of surfing on 19 December was relocated to Ho'okipa
Ho'okipa
Ho‘okipa Beach Park is located on the north shore of Maui, Hawaii, USA. It is perhaps the most renowned windsurfing site in the world The waves here are largest during the winter, and break across a system of reefs that extend across the bay. During the summer the waves are smaller. Ho'okipa is...
Beach Park on the other side of Maui. Stephanie Gilmore won an exciting contest against Melanie Bartels to claim her second Billabong Pro Maui and first Triple Crown title. Seven time world champion, Layne Beachley, bowed out of professional surfing with semi-final defeat by Gilmore. Brazilian Silvana Lima lost out to Bartels in the semi-finals but her consolation was taking second place in the ASP women's tour.
Final Heat Scores
| Surfer | Nationality | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Stephanie Gilmore | Australia | 17.60 |
| Melanie Bartels | Hawaii | 14.80 |
Roll of honour
| Year | Surfer | Nationality |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Joel Parkinson | Australia |
| 2009 | Joel Parkinson | Australia |
| 2008 | Joel Parkinson | Australia |
| 2007 | Bede Durbidge | Australia |
| 2006 | Andy Irons | Hawaii |
| 2005 | Andy Irons | Hawaii |
| 2004 | Sunny Garcia | Hawaii |
| 2003 | Andy Irons | Hawaii |
| 2002 | Andy Irons | Hawaii |
| 2001 | Myles Padaca | Hawaii |
| 2000 | Sunny Garcia | Hawaii |
| 1999 | Sunny Garcia | Hawaii |