Pipeline Masters Kicks Off ; World Tour Spots Up For Grabs

Kelly Slater may have clinched his record ninth world title earlier this season but there are still three spots open on the ASP World Tour roster for 2009.  The season-ending Billabong Pipeline Masters will decide who will get those slots, and Chris Ward made his statement in round two Tuesday,  scoring a high heat total of 19.90 out of 20.00.  Ward is currently ranked 24th on the tour and the cut-off for the 2009 Tour is the top 27.

Current world tour surfers who were eliminated today from the 2009 tour roster were Daniel Ross, Royden Bryson, Ricky Basnett, Jay Thompson, Rodrigo Dornelles, Luke Munro, Mick Campbell, Roy Powers and Leonardo Neves.

Action on round two is expected to continue on Wednesday and can be watched via a live webcast on the official Triple Crown of Surfing website.