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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, November 21, 2008

Moore surfs way into record books

By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Punahou School junior Carissa Moore beat Layne Beachley in the final at Hale'iwa Ali'i Beach.

BERNIE BAKER | Special to The Honolulu Advertiser

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There was no big victory party for Carissa Moore last night.

After a historic surfing victory yesterday, Moore's celebration was put on hold for ... school.

"Yes, I still have to do homework," said Moore, a junior at Punahou School.

Which makes her victory in the women's division of the Reef Hawaiian Pro all the more remarkable.

Moore, 16, became the youngest surfer — male or female — to win a Vans Triple Crown of Surfing contest.

The Reef Hawaiian Pro is the first contest in the Triple Crown series, and most of the world's top-ranked female surfers were in the field.

"It's a pretty amazing feeling," Moore said. "I'm really stoked and happy."

The final day of the contest was run in 3- to 5-foot waves at Hale'iwa Ali'i Beach.

Moore is one of the most decorated amateur surfers in the world, and yesterday was her first significant professional victory.

Because of her lack of professional experience, Moore had to qualify for the Reef Hawaiian Pro through a separate trials heat. She won the trials heat, then proceeded to win every one of her heats over the two days of competition.

"After making it through the trials, I was just trying to make it through heats and see where it took me," she said. "I wasn't expecting any of this."

Moore received $4,500 for the victory, and is now in the lead for the prestigious Triple Crown championship, which goes to the best overall surfer in the three contests.

"I think that would be pretty cool, but I'm not really expecting anything right now," she said.

It was Moore's first contest with new sponsors Red Bull and Nike 6.0.

She dedicated the win to her grandfather, Richard Moore, who died one year ago.

"I felt like he was with me out there," she said.

Australia's Layne Beachley, a seven-time former women's world champion, placed second. Beachley's rookie year on the world tour was 1990 — two years before Moore was born.

"I asked the girls to respect their elders and be nice to me," said Beachley, 36. "It felt weird because I'm the past generation and that's the future generation."

The other two finalists were Australia's Laura Enever, 17, and Sunset Beach's Coco Ho, 17. Enever took third place and Ho was fourth.

"Seeing (Enever and Ho) in the final helped, I think," Moore said. "I didn't feel out of place."

Moore held the lead for most of the 25-minute final. With five minutes remaining, she completed a series of flawless turns on a wave and the judges scored it an 8.17 (out of 10). Her two-wave total was 14.5.

Beachley needed a score of 6.67 in the closing minutes, but was foiled by what she said "may have been a Hawaiian team thing."

With Beachley in proper position for a wave in the closing seconds, Ho got in the way and received an interference penalty.

"I was in fourth, so I had nothing to lose," said Ho, a senior at Elite Element Academy. "It ran through my head that I could help Carissa, but I made the decision to take the wave on my own. I told Layne I was sorry after."

Beachley has already announced that this will be her final year on the world tour. She is still in contention for the 2008 women's world championship, and trails only Moore for the Triple Crown title.

"Technically, I can still win both, and that would be the ultimate way to go out," she said. "This has really boosted my confidence. Right now, I want to pack up my boards and surf at Sunset."

The next women's event in the Triple Crown series is the Roxy Pro at Sunset Beach.

FINAL RESULTS

1, Carissa Moore (Hawai'i), $4,500. 2, Layne Beachley (Australia), $2,500. 3, Laura Enever (Australia), $2,100. 4, Coco Ho (Hawai'i), $1,900. 5 (tie), Melanie Bartels (Hawai'i) and Rosanne Hodge (South Africa), $1,400. 7 (tie), Claire Bevilacqua (Australia) and Rebecca Woods (Australia), $1,200. 9 (tie), Bruna Schmitz (Brazil), Courtney Conlogue (California), Sally Fitzgibbons (Australia), Silvana Lima (Brazil), $1,000. 13 (tie), Stephanie Gilmore (Australia), Samantha Cornish (Australia), Kyla Langen (California), Alana Blanchard (Hawai'i), $900.

HAWAI'I SURFERS SHINE IN MEN'S COMPETITION

Most of the fourth round of the men's division of the Reef Hawaiian Pro was also run yesterday at Hale'iwa Ali'i Beach.

Of the 26 total surfers advancing out of yesterday's men's heats, 12 were from Hawai'i.

Wai'anae's Sunny Garcia, who owns a record six Triple Crown championships, advanced to the fifth round.

Other Hawai'i surfers advancing included Dustin Barca, Kekoa Bacalso and Joel Centeio. They are all in contention to qualify for the elite World Championship Tour in 2009 if they fare well in the Triple Crown.

Australia's Bede Durbidge, the defending Triple Crown champion, also advanced.

Among the surfers eliminated were Fred Patacchia Jr., who is Hawai'i's top-ranked surfer, and 2007 world champion Mick Fanning of Australia.

The men's Reef Hawaiian Pro requires one more day of competition. The final day could run today or tomorrow.

For updates, visit http://triplecrownofsurfing.com.

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com.