The 2008 Reef Hawaiian Pro resumed action Thursday after several days off and some of the world tour surfers appeared to caught off guard, getting bounced uncharacteristically early in the contest during the round of 64.

Last year’s world champ Mick Fanning was the first to go, knocked out in the first heat of the round by Brett Simpson and Tonino Benson (Yadin Nicol was also eliminated).  Later in the round Freddy Patacchia and CJ Hobgood were also eliminated.

Among the familiar faces to move forward were Sunny Garcia, Taj Burrow and Bede Durbidge, along with defending champ Roy Powers.

One full day of action remains for the contest, which could wrap up on Friday or Saturday.  Catch the live webcast at the Triple Crown of Surfing website.

However, when the first round kicks off a few notable names will be missing and won’t be able to watch Slater’s inevitable march into history.

Defending world champion Mick Fanning is returning to Coolangatta, Australia, to rest after suffering a groin injury in South Africa at the J-Bay contest last July.  The injury is expected to keep him sidelined through the Hang Loose contest in late October.

Also missing the event due to injury are Dean Morrison and Neco Padaratz.

Andy and Bruce Irons will also be skipping the event, though they are chalking it up to “personal reasons.”  Bruce, who won the Rip Curl Pro Search contest in August, is retiring from the ASP World Tour this season and three-time world champ Andy is having an off-year, ranked 13th overall on the tour.  Andy also skipped out on his second-round heat last month at the Quiksilver Pro France.

Find out more about the contest at the official site.

Here are the first round match-ups.

Billabong Pro Mundaka Round 1 Heat Match-Ups:
Heat 1: Kai Otton (AUS), Heitor Alves (BRA), Aritz Aranburu (EUK)*
Heat 2: Jeremy Flores (FRA), Mick Campbell (AUS), Ricky Basnett (ZAF)
Heat 3: Adrian Buchan (AUS), Pancho Sullivan (HAW), Nic Muscroft (AUS)
Heat 4: C.J. Hobgood (USA), Roy Powers (HAW), Manoa Drollet (PYF)
Heat 5: Bobby Martinez (USA), Ben Dunn (AUS), Gabe Kling (USA)
Heat 6: Adriano de Souza (BRA), Jordy Smith (ZAF), Tim Boal (FRA)
Heat 7: Joel Parkinson (AUS), Tim Reyes (USA), Mark Occhilupo (AUS)
Heat 8: Kelly Slater (USA), Taylor Knox (USA), Reubyn Ash (GBR)
Heat 9: Taj Burrow (AUS), Damien Hobgood (USA), Marco San Segundo (EUK)*
Heat 10: Bede Durbidge (AUS), Tom Whitaker (AUS), Hodei Collazo (EUK)*
Heat 11: Luke Stedman (AUS), Jay Thompson (AUS), Daniel Ross (AUS)
Heat 12: Chris Ward (USA), Rodrigo Dornelles (BRA), Jihad Khodr (BRA)
Heat 13: Dayyan Neve (AUS), Mikael Picon (FRA), Leonardo Neves (BRA)
Heat 14: Dane Reynolds (USA), Tiago Pires (PRT), Travis Logie (ZAF)
Heat 15: Fredrick Patacchia (HAW), Daniel Wills (AUS), Ben Bourgeois (USA)
Heat 16: Kieren Perrow (AUS), Royden Bryson (ZAF), Luke Munro (AUS)

Two days of action have come and gone for the Quiksilver Pro France and several big names have bowed out already.  Mick Fanning, Joel Parkinson, Andy Irons, Bruce Irons and Tim Reyes all were eliminated in the second round, while Kelly Slater, Taj Burrow, Bede Durbidge and Dane Reynolds remain to surf another day.

There will be a lay day on Monday with surfing planned to resume Tuesday.  Slater can wrap up his record ninth record world title if a number of conditions are met.  If Slater wins the event, Burrow and Durbidge need to miss the semis for the title to be his.  It’s a tall order, and if he doesn’t win it this week, his next chance will come soon in Spain at the Billabong Pro Mundaka — the place where he won his eight title.

Watch the action live when it goes down on www.quiksilverlive.com.

Here are the match-ups for Round Three.

Round 3 Quiksilver Pro France Match-ups
Heat 1: Adriano de Souza (BRA) vs. Travis Logie (ZAF)
Heat 2: Dayyan Neve (AUS) vs. Heitor Alves (BRA)
Heat 3: Chris Ward (USA) vs. Ben Dunn (AUS)
Heat 4: Bobby Martinez (USA) vs. Jihad Khodr (BRA)
Heat 5: Kai Otton (AUS) vs. Mick Campbell (AUS)
Heat 6: Luke Stedman (AUS) vs. Pancho Sullivan (HAW)
Heat 7: Tom Whitaker (AUS) vs. Taylor Knox (USA)
Heat 8: Kelly Slater (USA) vs. Joan Duru (FRA)
Heat 9: Taj Burrow (AUS) vs. Gabe Kling (USA)
Heat 10: Dane Reynolds (USA) vs. Jordy Smith (ZAF)
Heat 11: Jeremy Flores (FRA) vs. Rodrigo Dornelles (BRA)
Heat 12: Adrian Buchan (AUS) vs. Tiago Pires (PRT)
Heat 13: Bede Durbidge (AUS) vs. Michel Bourez (PYF)
Heat 14: Kieren Perrow (AUS) vs. Roy Powers (HAW)
Heat 15: C.J. Hobgood (USA) vs. Daniel Wills (AUS)
Heat 16: Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) vs. Damien Hobgood (USA)

Um, so the Surfer Poll Awards went down last week in Anaheim.  We weren’t there this year but we fully expected Mick Fanning and Stephanie Gilmore to be rewarded for their great seasons last year.  After all, the awards are supposed to honor the best surfers from the last season, not right now.  Turns out we were wrong…

Anyway, it’s great that “Bustin’ Down the Door” won two awards.

We’ve gotten a few releases about the awards, so read on for those — you will also see the full results…

Dane Reynolds also won something.

HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF AT THE 2008 SURFER POLL AND VIDEO AWARDS PRESENTED BY SUZUKI AUTO

DANA POINT, Calif. (Sept. 10, 2008) — The masses have spoken and once again Kelly Slater and Sofia Mulanovich reign supreme in the ultimate annual election. The two accepted their awards last night at the 2008 SURFER Poll and Video Awards presented by Suzuki Auto at The Grove in Anaheim, California. The venue was packed to the brim, with several being turned away at the door due to a record-breaking over-capacity crowd. The other big winner of the night, claiming both “Movie of the Year” and “Documentary of the Year,” was “Bustin’ Down the Door” featuring surf legends Shaun Thomson, Peter “PT” Townend, and Wayne “Rabbit” Bartholomew.

The action began outside on the red carpet with celebrity sightings including Social Distortion frontman Mike Ness, Miami Ink’s Tim Hendricks, musical guest Mickey Avalon, Prison Break’s Dominic Purcell, Charger football legend Junior Seau and former Major League Baseball pitcher David Wells, alongside all the big-name pros. FUEL TV was on hand filming for an upcoming broadcast, which will feature highlights from the night and classic “Point Break” dead presidents reenactments. Hosted again by the dynamic duo of Sal Masekela and Benji Weatherly, the evening stayed true to its roots of irreverent commentary and soul-stirring highlights from all of the year’s best surf movies and action.

“SURFER Poll is by the people and for the people – which makes it unique,” proclaimed Masekela in his fifth consecutive year greeting the SURFER Poll audience. This sentiment was echoed throughout the night as Poll Award winners accepted their trophies with humble acceptance speeches thanking their fans for voting and their sponsors for supporting. “It’s pretty cool to have the readers of the magazine like what I’m doing,” said Taj Burrow upon claiming sixth-place in the Poll, which awards the top 10 men and top five females honors based on SURFER readers’ voting.

Special guest presenters for the evening and for the Video Awards portion of the show included: South African icon Shaun Thomson, who presented Kalani Chapman with “Best Tube Ride” for “Second to None;” former World Champion Sunny Garcia, who presented “Best Male Performance” to fellow Hawaiian Clay Marzo for “Just Add Water;” SURFER Photo Editor Grant Ellis, who presented “Photo of the Year” to Scott Aichner; new SURFER Editor Joel Patterson, who presented “Boost Breakthrough Performer” to Nathaniel Curran; and legendary filmmaker Bruce Brown, who presented “Movie of the Year” to the “Bustin’ Down the Door” crew.

While most of the names in the Poll remained consistent, only shuffling in order, two surfers made their debut. In the women’s Poll, 16-year-old phenom Coco Ho claimed the No. 5 spot and accepted her award modestly stating: “It’s an honor to be standing here with my heroes and friends,” and giving a shout out to best friend, Carissa Moore, who snagged third in the Poll for the second year in a row. In the men’s Poll, ASP World Tour rookie and aerial dynamo, Dane Reynolds, made an impressive first showing in the No. 3 spot. Reynolds also walked with the “Best Maneuver” award for “Dude Cruise.”

A testament to just how impressive Reynolds is, Kelly Slater, upon accepting his monumental 14th Poll focused heavily on giving props to the young up-and-comer.  “Dane Reynolds is the best surfer in the world by far,” said Slater. “Surfing has advanced to where it should be right now and Dane is proof of that. Sitting back and watching surfing today [at the Boost Mobile Pro] made me really proud.”

Completing the event’s “firsts,” Dave Rastovich was presented with the first-ever “Agent of Change” award for the work he is doing with Surfers for Cetaceans. He launched the nonprofit in 2004 to help support the protection and conservation of dolphins, whales, and other marine wildlife, and is truly making a difference among the surfing community and beyond. Surfers for Cetaceans and Surfrider’s “Save Trestles” campaign were the two beneficiaries of this year’s VIP table sales, which raised $16,000 for the two organizations to share.

Complete SURFER Poll and Video Award results:

Coors Heavy Water
Ian Walsh (The Life)

Worst Wipeout
Mark Healey (The Life)

Best Tuberide
Kalani Chapman (Second To None)

Best Female Performance
Stephanie Gilmore (Somewhere)

Best Male Performance
Clay Marzo (Just Add Water)

Best Maneuver
Dane Reynolds (Dude Cruise)

Best Cinematography
Waterman

Best Documentary
Bustin’ Down the Door

Movie of The Year
Bustin’ Down the Door

Boost Breakthrough Performer
Nathaniel Curran

Photo of the Year
Scott Aichner

Agent of Change
Dave Rastovich

Breakthrough Filmmaker
Matt Beauchesne

SURFER Poll Men
   1. Kelly Slater
2. Mick Fanning
3. Dane Reynolds
4. Joel Parkinson
5. Andy Irons
6. Taj Burrow
7. Bruce Irons
8. Rob Machado
9. Bobby Martinez
10. CJ Hobgood

SURFER Poll Women
   1. Sofia Mulanovich
2. Stephanie Gilmore
3. Carissa Moore
4. Layne Beachley
5. Coco Ho

Check www.surferpoll.com for complete details from the event including images and video.  See highlights on FUEL TV on October 27 in the “Meet & Brotatoes” Monday night special block at 8pm ET/PT. Check www.fuel.tv for additional airdates and times.

Special thanks to the sponsors of the 2008 SURFER Poll and Video Awards: Suzuki Auto, FUEL TV, Red Bull, Boost Mobile and Coors.

QUIKSILVER SURFERS PICK UP FOUR WINS AT 2008 SURFER POLL AWARDS

(Huntington Beach, Calif.) September 11, 2008 – Quiksilver congratulates team-riders Kelly Slater, Clay Marzo, Dane Reynolds and Mark Healey for first-place nods in categories for Best Male Performance, Best Maneuver and Worst Wipeout at the 2008 SURFER Poll and Video Awards presented by Suzuki.  Slater was once again voted into the top-spot in the poll, while Marzo picked up Best Male Performance for his role in “Clay Marzo: Just Add Water”.  Dane Reynolds locked in Best Maneuver for his sick sections in “Dude Cruise” while Mark Healey was lauded for continuing to chase shacks despite suffering Worst Wipeout on film in “The Life”.

The 36th Annual SURFER Poll award show was held on Tuesday, September 9 at the Grove of Anaheim, and was attended by top industry executives, pro surfers, celebrities and other notables.  Slater’s win Tuesday brings his tally of SURFER Poll awards to 14 in the year he is expected to win his ninth World Title.

Upon receiving his award the surf legend focused on praising the up-and-comer Reynolds, “Dane Reynolds is the best surfer in the world by far,” said Slater. “Surfing has advanced to where it should be right now and Dane is proof of that. Sitting back and watching surfing today [at the Boost Mobile Pro] made me really proud.”

For all up-to-date information on Quiksilver team-riders’ activities, and Kelly’s quest for number nine, please visit www.quiksilver.com and be sure to sign up for the Mountain Wave blog.

For additional coverage of the 2008 SURFER Poll Awards check out www.surferpoll.com.

ROXY PROFESSIONAL SURFERS TAKE HOME TOP HONORS AT THE 2008 SURFER POLL AWARDS
Sofia Mulanovich Claims #1 Spot for the Fourth Consecutive Year, With Young Gun Carissa Moore Claiming Her Second Consecutive #3 Ranking

Huntington Beach, Calif. – (September 11, 2008) – History repeated itself at this year’s SURFER Poll and Video Awards with Roxy team rider Sofia Mulanovich winning top female surfer for the fourth year in a row, her sixth SURFER Poll award altogether. Roxy’s young superstar Carissa Moore scored the #3 spot for the second consecutive year.

The 36th annual SURFER Poll and Video Awards is recognized as the most powerful voice in the surf industry because the list is determined by the people, those that love the waves. Roxy rider Mulanovich won her first #1 SURFER Poll award in 2005, and remains on top ever since. In addition, Mulanovich took home two awards in 2006 for Best Documentary and Best Female Performance in a Surf Film for “Sofia – A Documentary.”

“I am so stoked to have won the SURFER poll,” said Mulanovich, via video.  “It’s special because it is an award decided by the votes of surfers from around the world, which is the group that matters most in the end. To win the top honor four years in a row is so amazing, I can’t thank everyone who voted for me enough.” Currently Mulanovich is competing aggressively at the Billabong Girls Pro Rio in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Sofia Mulanovich was not the only Roxy girl making waves at this year’s award ceremony. Sixteen-year-old “Queen of the Groms” Carissa Moore nailed the #3 spot for the second consecutive year.  Over the past five years Carissa Moore has captured the surf world by storm with her incredible talent and vibrant personality.  Amassing a fan club that includes Kelly Slater, who said, “she’s a refreshing face of humility and kindness.  And she’s arguably one of the best ever at her age, in any sport.”  Moore thanked her fans and her father for the support given to her.

Sofia Mulanovich, the world’s first Latin American surfing champ, and Carissa Moore are proud members of the Roxy surf team.  Leaders both in and out of the water, they embody the spirit and heritage of the Roxy culture.

We told you about the Rip Curl Pro Search going on as planned in Bali.  The contest website has launched and before the live webcast begins, you can watch the latest Rip Curl film “Somewhere” on-demand.

The movie features 10 “search” trips from the likes of Mick Fanning, Stephanie Gilmore, Pancho Sullivan, Taylor Knox, Jessi Miley-Dyer and Bethany Hamilton (among many others).

So if you haven’t already gotten enough surf updates from the US Open and the Red Bull Big Wave Africa, do yourself a favor and check it out.

Kelly Slater has won the Billabong Pro J-Bay, putting him one step closer to winning his record ninth ASP World Tour title.   Slater absolutely dominated last year’s defending world champ Mick Fanning in the final, 16.73 to 9.40.  Slater had two 8.0+ waves (8.50, 8.23) while Fanning coudln’t score more than 4.73.

The win mark’s Slater’s fourth tour win of the season (out of five) and Slater is close to clinching another title though the season isn’t quite at the halfway point.

“I guess it’s not over ‘till it’s over, but it’s like climbing Everest and he’s halfway up the bloody hill,” Fanning said of the race for the world title.

The tour continues July 30 with the Rip Curl Pro Search in a location TBD.

Keep reading for the release about the final day of action.

Slater Scalps Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay Fourth ASP Victory This Season

JEFFREYS BAY, South Africa (Thursday, July 17, 2008) – He’s done it again. Eight-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA) beat reigning ASP World Champion Mick Fanning (AUS) today to win the Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay, earn his 38th ASP World Tour victory and claim the fourth event on the 2008 ASP World Tour.

“I didn’t realize I was going to be overwhelmed by it, but I haven’t been in this position before, at this point of the year, with this many wins,” Slater said. “There are great things going on in my life so I’m just trying to soak it up and be appreciative.”

Surfing his 14th season on the ASP World Tour, Slater is still the only member of the Top 45 to win an event this season. The one tournament Slater lost was won by an event wildcard. He now has a 1262 point lead on World No. 2 Joel Parkinson and is in commanding contention to claim his 9th ASP World Title.

“I’ve put a lot of years in obviously, it’s been my life on so many levels for so long, in a way I was trying to pull back from it, but also I do love it,” Slater said. “I get a lot of enjoyment out of competing because competing really pushes your level. The best performances in the world are on tour.”

Slater beat Fanning 16.73 to 9.40 in the Billabong Pro Final. While conditions early this morning were clean and six foot (two metre), onshore winds made the semifinal and final tricky.

“It was really challenging,” Slater said. “You really have to change your frame of mind because we were looking at waves the other day where we were getting 30-45 second rides and doing six to eight maneuvers and now we’re looking at waves where if you get three moves it’s a good score. It’s really hard to change your perception on how you are going to surf a wave. I didn’t really catch on until the very end of that heat when I realized I could get a three move wave and probably seal it.”

With six events remaining, there is still a possibility the title could be clinched by another surfer on the ASP World Tour roster, but the probability that will happen is small – something Slater’s competition knows all too well.

“I’d like to think I have it the bag but I have to be realistic, it’s early on – we’re not quite half way yet,” Slater said. “We have 11 events this year and this is number five. Last year at this point I was looking at Mick [Fanning] that way. He had a first, a couple seconds and a third so I’d imagine being on the same side of that coin and looking at someone with four firsts and a throwaway is probably tough to look at.”

Only one member of the Top 45, Taylor Knox, is older than Slater. At 36, Slater already owns the title of youngest and oldest ASP World Title winner. He won his last World Title at age 34 in 2006.

“When I was a kid I would never have imagined a guy who is 36 winning four events on tour, let alone having a chance at the world title, so I’m just trying to soak that up,” Slater said.

Fanning was understandably disappointed to lose his second final of the year to Slater – the two met in the final of the first event of the year on the Gold Coast of Australia too.

“I surfed like an idiot,” Fanning said. “I had the opportunity to win the whole thing and I fell and I don’t know why. I don’t know what happened, I just had a shocker. I was feeling great, I just couldn’t stay on my board.”

Fanning, who was hoping to defend his ASP World Title this year can’t help but take a defeatist’s look at the 2008 title race.

“I guess it’s not over ‘till it’s over, but it’s like climbing Everest and he’s halfway up the bloody hill,” Fanning said.

Fanning moved to 4th with his second place result at Jeffreys Bay. He beat last year’s World No. 2 and the defending Billabong Pro Champion Taj Burrow (AUS) in the semifinals. Burrow now sits 5th on the ratings.

“I’m pretty disappointed,” Burrow said. “Mick just wave-ed me to death basically. He picked the absolute best waves and must have surfed them pretty well because he got a 9.00. I got really crap waves and tried my guts out to try to do some turns and throw airs but it was just really choppy and hard. I needed to be more patient really.”

Burrow, like most of his compatriots, shares Fanning’s sentiments on Slater’s victory today.

“Kelly wins another final, enough said, unbelievable.” Burrow said. “The door is really closing as far as I can see it. He’s got a ridiculous amount of keepers now so… how many events left? Not enough!”

Slater beat Parkinson in a close semifinal en route to the final. He stays in 2nd on the leaderboard with the result.

“Conditions really deteriorated but I had my chances but I let one or two waves go that I probably shouldn’t have I could have got my scores on them,” Parkinson said. “It’s hard to tell because you stand up on a wave and it looks like it’s going to be a piece of crap and it turns into a good wave or you stand up on a wave that looks good and it turns into a piece of crap. That’s the nature of the game.”

The next event on the 2008 ASP World Tour remains undisclosed. The “Search” event will be held July 30-August 10, 2008, “Somewhere.”

For more details visit www.aspworldtour.com and www.billabongpro.com.

Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay Final Results:
Final: Kelly Slater (USA) 16.73 def. Mick Fanning (AUS) 9.40

Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay Semifinal Results:
Heat 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 15.00 def. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 14.17
Heat 2: Mick Fanning (AUS) 16.84 def. Taj Burrow (AUS) 11.83

Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay Quarterfinal Results:
Heat 1: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 17.74 def. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 14.00
Heat 2: Kelly Slater (USA) 15.17 def. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 9.84
Heat 3: Mick Fanning (AUS) 14.27 def. C.J. Hobgood (USA) 9.60
Heat 4: Taj Burrow (AUS) def. Andy Irons (HAW)

Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay Round 4 Results:
Heat 5: Mick Fanning (AUS) 16.44 def. Bruce Irons (HAW) 13.33
Heat 6: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 14.76 def. Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 10.33
Heat 7: Taj Burrow (AUS) 17.00 def. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 16.76
Heat 8: Andy Irons (HAW) 11.34 def. Jeremy Flores (FRA) 5.23

ASP World Tour Ratings after Stop No. 5 – the Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay
1. Kelly Slater (USA) 5210 points
2. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 3948 points
3. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 3782 points
4. Mick Fanning (AUS) 3753 points
5. Taj Burrow (AUS) 3638 points
6. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 3540 points
7. C.J. Hobgood (USA) 3460 points
8. Andy Irons (HAW) 3338 points
9. Bobby Martinez (USA) 3028 points
10. Adrian Buchan (AUS) 2884 points

It’s been two years since Mick Fanning was knocked out of an ASP World Tour contest in the second round and Tuesday it happened again…  at the same place.  In 2006 Fanning made an early exit in Tahiti and this year Brazilian wildcard Bruno Santos made his stay a short one.

Kelly Slater, who won the first two events of the season, also had a scare after being sent to the second sound for only the second time in more than year   Wildcard Manoa Drollet delivered him to the second round and there he dispatched another wildcard, Jamie O’Brien, 18.70 to 13.90.  Reporters were speculating whether or not Slater would even show up since he was a no show the last few days but fellow surfers didn’t doubt he would show up.

For a full recap of all the action check out the press release below (including all of the match-ups).  Then check out the live webcast tomorrow (Wednesday) — the contest is expected to run again.

Fanning Bows Out of the Billabong Pro Tahiti Slater Survives Round 2

TEAHUPOO, Tahiti (Tuesday, May 13, 2008) – Reigning ASP World Champion Mick Fanning (AUS) suffered his first last place finish in two years at the Billabong Pro Tahiti this afternoon. After waiting for six days to commence competition, all of Round 1 and the first five heats of Round 2 were run in perfect four to six foot waves at Teahupoo today.

Fanning was relegated to the sudden death round after finishing a tenth of a point behind Pancho Sullivan (HAW) in a low scoring Round 1 heat. He failed to find his rhythm in Round 2 too, losing to Brazilian Wildcard Bruno Santos in the dying seconds of their duel.

“Things could be better,” Fanning said. “Every wave was a battle for fours and fives out there. They weren’t opening up and then I was either too wide or too deep – I couldn’t find the happy medium, but it happens. The waves were good, I wasn’t good.”

Fanning made the Final of the Billabong Pro Tahiti last year and finished in the semifinals or better in 11 of the last 13 ASP World Tour events. His equal 33rd finish today is his first since bowing out early at Teahupoo two years ago. Surfers can discard two results at year’s end.

“It’s been a couple years,” Fanning said. “I’m just going to throw this one away – there are a lot of events left so I’m going to go home and get focused again.”

Santos trailed Fanning the entire heat but only needed a 3.34 to change the situation. He beat Fanning 10.00 to 9.17 when he earned a 4.17 on wave he caught as the heat-end hooter blew.

“It was a really bad heat because the waves were so good and I couldn’t find a wave better than five points,” Santos said. “It was a bad heat but at the end I just found a little barrel. I almost fell but I made the barrel and I got the score.”

Eight-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA) was also forced to surf Round 2 after finishing second to local wildcard Manoa Drollet (PYF) in Round 1. Slater, the 2000, 2003 and 2005 winner of the event, beat wildcard Jamie O’Brien (HAW) 18.70 to 13.90 this afternoon.

“Jamie is a great surfer and one of the best tube riders of all time so I knew it was going to be a tough heat,” Slater said. “The thing I thought about going into Round 2 was that I’ve got another wildcard now, who is probably the best wildcard. Instead of thinking about losing earlier I was thinking that there were three waves at the end of the last heat that Manoa kept me off that I could have easily got my scores on, so the heat was a lot closer than it looked since we were basically even on one wave. You’ve got to play on your strengths and be realistic about your situation.”

Slater only surfed Round 2 once last year and prior to his Round 1 loss today, hadn’t lost a heat this season. He has won the first two stops on the 2008 ASP World Tour.

“Obviously streaks are nice but all streaks come to end,” Slater said. “The thing about it is that you just have to take your losses and learn something out there and I think I did that. I had the waves to win in that first heat but I just got held off on a couple. I figured with priority I would be able to be a little more ive, take my time and be where I want on the wave. I probably caught eight closeouts in that first heat because I had to go so deep every time.”

Slater will meet Drollet again in Round 3, but the local surfer will go into their bout with added confidence having won today.

“It’s excellent to beat Kelly,” Drollet said. “I feel bad, he was a bit pissed, but it’s a contest. I was lucky to get the best two waves of the heat, Kelly got one in the end and he almost came back. In this competition, the guy who gets the good waves is going to win the heat, and that was me today.”

Drollet is the only local surfer in the 2008 edition of the Billabong Pro, the Tahitians often eliminate World Tour surfers at Teahupoo, but a local has never won the event.

“I got third once and C.J. Hobgood knocked me out of the contest that year, that was nine years ago,” Drollet said. “Of course, I dream of winning this contest but I don’t want to get ahead of myself. They’re all good and they all know the wave as well as I do. I will take it wave by wave.”

The heat of the day was surfed by Adriano de Souza (BRA) who found two deep barrels to post a near perfect 19.53 out of 20.00 and advance over Kieren Perrow (AUS) and Miky Picon (FRA). His heat total today is by far the highest of his three year ASP World Tour career.

“I’ve come here many times to Teahupoo and I always get good waves but I can never show that in my heats so today I’m pretty happy, it’s my day,” de Souza said. “I’m really happy to get the huge scores, hopefully I can keep the same determination and the same focus for the next heat because I’m hoping to finish this contest near the Final.”

Top seeded surfers Andy Irons (HAW), Joel Parkinson (AUS) and Taj Burrow (AUS) made their Round 1 heats today and move straight to Round 3. World No. 2 Bede Durbidge (AUS) fought back in Round 2 to advance as well.

Event organizers will endeavor to run the remaining 11 heats of Round 2 and most of Round 3 tomorrow. Conditions are expected to be as good as they were this afternoon tomorrow morning so competition is slated to start at 6:30am with Heat 6 of Round 2.

The Billabong Pro Tahiti will be webcast LIVE on www.billabongpro.com.

Billabong Pro Tahiti Round 1 Results:
Heat 1: Dean Morrison (AUS) 16.16, Jordy Smith (ZAF) 12.73, Ricky Basnett (ZAF) 9.17
Heat 2: Kai Otton (AUS) 14.07, Luke Munro (AUS) 13.40, Royden Bryson (ZAF) 11.17
Heat 3: Bobby Martinez (USA) 14.74, Travis Logie (ZAF) 13.50, Leonardo Neves (BRA) 6.73
Heat 4: Tiago Pires (PRT) 15.17, Jeremy Flores (FRA) 10.44, Roy Powers (HAW) 3.07
Heat 5: Andy Irons (HAW) 11.27, Tim Reyes (USA) 10.50, Aritz Aranburu (EUK) 6.63
Heat 6: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 13.94, Chris Ward (USA) 12.87, Ben Dunn (AUS) 10.77
Heat 7: Dayyan Neve (AUS) 16.16, Bede Durbidge (AUS) 14.00, Nic Muscroft (AUS) 5.20
Heat 8: Manoa Drollet (PYF) 18.60, Kelly Slater (USA) 15.30, C.J. Hobgood (USA) 13.00
Heat 9: Pancho Sullivan (HAW) 9.50, Mick Fanning (AUS) 9.40, Jamie O’’Brien (HAW) 8.03
Heat 10: Taj Burrow (AUS) 14.50, Tom Whitaker (AUS) 12.73, Bruno Santos (BRA) 6.70
Heat 11: Adrian Buchan (AUS) 11.43, Daniel Ross (AUS) 8.73, Jay Thompson (AUS) 7.00
Heat 12: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 19.53, Kieren Perrow (AUS) 9.20, Mikael Picon (FRA) 9.20
Heat 13: Heitor Alves (BRA) 15.27, Taylor Knox (USA) 6.83, Rodrigo Dornelles (BRA) 4.93
Heat 14: Luke Stedman (AUS) 15.33, Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 11.93, Jihad Khodr (BRA) 3.16
Heat 15: Michael Campbell (AUS) 18.24, Bruce Irons (HAW) 16.5, Dane Reynolds (USA) 11.77
Heat 16: Daniel Wills (AUS) 14.83, Neco Padaratz (BRA) 14.10, Ben Bourgeois (USA) 10.26

Billabong Pro Tahiti Round 2 Results:
Heat 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 18.70, Jamie O’’Brien (HAW) 13.90
Heat 2: Bruno Santos (BRA) 10.00, Mick Fanning (AUS) 9.17
Heat 3: Bede Durbidge (AUS) 13.74, Nic Muscroft (AUS) 2.97
Heat 4: Chris Ward (USA) 14.50, Jeremy Flores (FRA) 12.90
Heat 5: Taylor Knox (USA) 11.83, Aritz Aranburu (EUK) 7.44

Remaining Billabong Pro Tahiti Round 2 Match-Ups:
Heat 6: Dane Reynolds (USA) vs. Travis Logie (ZAF)
Heat 7: Neco Padaratz (BRA) vs. Royden Bryson (ZAF)
Heat 8: C.J. Hobgood (USA) vs. Ricky Basnett (ZAF)
Heat 9: Tom Whitaker (AUS) vs. Daniel Ross (AUS)
Heat 10: Ben Dunn (AUS) vs. Mikael Picon (FRA)
Heat 11: Tim Reyes (USA) vs. Jihad Khodr (BRA)
Heat 12: Roy Powers (HAW) vs. Ben Bourgeois (USA)
Heat 13: Leonardo Neves (BRA) vs. Bruce Irons (HAW)
Heat 14: Luke Munro (AUS) vs. Fredrick Patacchia (HAW)
Heat 15: Jordy Smith (ZAF) vs. Rodrigo Dornelles (BRA)
Heat 16: Jay Thompson (AUS) vs. Kieren Perrow (AUS)