The Mr. Price Pro Ballito got underway at Ballito in South Africa, on Monday, July 2, 2012 thanks to clear skies and sufficient swell. The surf action was pretty spectacular too. Thankfully, the venerable surf contest is expected to continue through Sunday, July 8, 2012. Here's a quick rundown on some of the latest results:
Round of 96 Results - Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Thus far the surfers have managed to complete 15 surf heats. Based on what I have witnessed, the words of the week are Brazil and Conner Coffin.
On Tuesday, July 3, 2012, the highest heat score went to Brazilian Bernado Miranda. Miranda faced off in Heat 8 against Guadeloupe's Charles Martin, South African Brendon Gibbens and American Brett Simpson. With all the finesse and skill of a seasoned pro, Miranda managed to fire off a gorgeous 8.93 point ride. He finished the surf heat with an overall score of 17.10 points. The next best scores went to Puerto Rico's Brian Toth (14.57) in Heat 7 and Hawaiian Torrey Meister (14.50) in Heat 9. If you ask me, Meister's epic air reverse was one of the best surfing maneuvers of the day.
Also on Tuesday, 18 year old wild card entry, Conner Coffin performed phenomenally well in his Heat 3 matchup against Aussie Stu Kennedy and Brazilians Jean Da Silva and Tomas Hermes. Although he didn't win the heat, the young NSSA star proved that he has the chops to surf alongside the big guns. Coffin finished the surf heat in 3rd place with a total of 11.33 points. The victory went to Tomas Hermes, who finished the surf heat with 13.67 points. Stu Kennedy finished in 2nd place with 12.60 points.
Round of 96 Results - Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Brazilian Adriano De Souza delivered a stand out performance on Wednesday, July 4, 2012 in Heat 12, which earned him the highest heat score of the day. With a final score of 16.90, De Souza left Frenchman Marc Lacomare, Aussie Lincoln Taylor and South African David Weare literally in his wake.
De Souza wasn't the only Brazilian to stomp down hard on his fellow competitors either. Peterson Crisanto served up a stunning display of surfing skill in Heat 15 against his fellow countryman Willian Cardoso, Frenchman Romain Cloitre and Aussie Heath Joske. Crisanto finished the surf with 16.27 points thus securing his advancement into the next round. It was the 2nd highest surf heat score to rock the leader board on Wednesday.
The 3rd highest surf heat score went to Hawaiian Granger Larsen in Heat 11. During the surf heat, Larsen thumped Brazilians Charlie Brown and Leonardo Neves as well as Frenchman Joan Duru by grabbing an impressive 15.77 points.
What's Next?
Round 96 of the Mr. Price Pro Ballito is expected to resume on Thursday, July 5, 2012 with Heat 16. It is expected to be a matchup between Hawaiian Kiron Jabour and awesome Aussies Yadin Nicol, Mitchel Coleborn and Davey Cathels. Other stand out surfers that fans should keep an eye on Thursday morning include the Hobgood Brothers, Nathan Yeomans, Tom Whitaker, Glenn Hall and Gabe Kling.
Killeen Gonzalez enjoys watching water sports with her family. She also has a history of interviewing pro surfers.
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