There are some stacked heats heading into Round One of the Billabong Pro at Jeffreys Bay, which will get underway Thursday with the arrival of a solid 8-foot swell that's already steaming right for the point at Supers. With the whole country still buzzing from the month-long World Cup rager, two of South Africa's native sons, Sean Holmes and Jordy Smith, are hoping to keep the party going in the pumping surf.

While we wouldn't doubt anyone's motivation, Thursday will be one of those occasions where surfers actually win by losing, because on Friday, when Round Two of the losers round starts, the waves should be pumping just as hard, and there's something to be said for having another 30 minutes of perfect J-Bay to yourself.

Given the forecast, don't be surprised to see a few guys coast in their first round heats. Especially Kelly Slater, who's got a nice comfy ratings lead. But to be clear, even if Slater tries his hardest his biggest challenge might actually come in Round One.

First of all, he's already drawn Damien Hobgood. Hobgood's got a long track record of J-bay success. He's made the final there a couple times, including last year, and is always dangerous when the waves are solid. If you're going to pick a backhander, you'd be hard pressed to do any better than him.

But the big question heading into Round One will be where South African giant killer Sean Holmes gets slotted. Holmes will join one of the following three combos: Kelly Slater and Damien Hobgood in heat 8, Taj Burrow and Keiren Perrow in heat 9, or Mick Fanning and Roy Powers in heat 10.

Holmes grew up two hours south of Jeffreys Bay in a place called Wilderness, which is as beautiful as it sounds. It's also one of the most consistent (and sharkiest) wave zones on the entire planet. Holmes was a part of a lost generation of South African stars who disappeared in the 1990s due to the South African economy.

Then, not unlike now, South African surfers who wanted pro careers had to leave home and move to more marketable venues like the U.S. and Australia. But Holmes, to his credit, didn't want to flee his homeland. With his country starting anew in the 1990s Holmes told me then, "If everyone leaves, who'll be here to help rebuild the new South Africa?"

It's that attitude and pride in his new country that makes Holmes a huge hometown favorite each year. And the fact that he absolutely rips J-Bay doesn't hurt either. He's been the single biggest obstacle in this event year after year, and with the surf due to pump, we don't see that changing.

Of course, with Jordy Smith hitting his stride (he just won the 5-Star Mr. Price Pro) heading into J-Bay he'll be one to watch as well. Jordy is sitting in a distant second place behind Slater right now in the World Title race. But he and South Africa are still riding high after an emotional World Cup united the country.

Smith and Holmes will do their best to keep the party going.

All photos courtesy ASP/ Kirstin & Cestari.

BALLITO, KwaDukuza/South Africa (Saturday, July 10, 2010) - Jordy Smith (Dbn), 22, etched his name into the history books today, becoming the third ever South African winner of the ASP 5-Star Mr Price Pro Ballito, simultaneously moving into the No. 1 position on the ASP World Rankings.

Smith defeated South Coast star Casey Grant (Scottburgh) in the Final to claim an emotional victory before his home crowd. Riding high on the shoulders of his friends, some of Durban's finest surfers, as the crowds exploded into cheers of support, Smith was awarded his enormous R121 000 winner's cheque.

"I haven't won an event in front of my home crowd since I was fifteen," Smith said (Smith won the ISA World Junior Games in Durban). "This is just wild! I am so happy right now I don't event know what to say!"

A standout from start to finish, the powerful natural-footer, who stands at an enormous 188 cm tall, used his priority to wait patiently for the better set waves. Unleashing a devastating combination of power carves and fin drifts, Smith posted 7.50 and 6.33 (each out of ten) scores off the bat, putting his opponent into a combination situation (needing a combination of two scoring rides) within the first 13 minutes of the heat.

Grant clawed his way back with an impressive three-second barrel ride to put himself back in contention with a 7.33, but it was not to be for the recently turned 21-year-old. Smith soon replied with a 7.93 for a series of savage on-the-rail carves to seal his victory.

"Casey has been one of the most outstanding surfers of this event and I knew I had to bring my A game against him," Smith said.

Despite creasing his board during the Semifinals, as well as breaking his favourite board during a free surfing session earlier in the week, Smith looked comfortable and in control throughout the week enjoying some of the best surfing conditions the KwaDukuza coastline has to offer.

"I haven't had waves this good for a while, I've been travelling all around the world and it's crazy to say that the best waves in the world are in my back yard," Smith said. "We're so lucky we've had the opportunity to surf here and I'm really happy that a South African won and made the finals."

Advancing into World No. 1 on the ASP World Rankings, Smith's result puts him in a fantastic position heading into the next World Tour stop the Billabong Pro Jeffrey's Bay next week.

"It's great to be at number one but it's a long road ahead," Smith said. "I kind of look at it like boxing, there's 12 rounds and we've only been through four so there's plenty more to go and you have to hang tight."

Standing shoulder to shoulder with his surfing icon, Grant could not have been happier with his runner-up result. While he could hardly afford to buy a cup of coffee this morning, his result today ensured that Grant will fall asleep R68 222 richer tonight.

"I never dreamed I would be up here alongside Jordy," Grant said. "It's such an honour because I have looked up to him my whole life. It's been an amazing day and I can't wait till that prize money comes in! It's been a blessing to be in contention for the title and to win all this money. Words cant even described how stoked I am right now!"

Touted by the international judging panel as the next big talent to come out of South Africa, Grant displayed incredible flair and style throughout the event, recording one of the single highest wave scores of the competition, a 9.33 (out of ten) earlier in the week.

"It's definitely given me a lot of confidence and a lot of people have said to me I better start stepping it up," Grant said. "I think I'll be doing a few more events this year and then hit the Star Tour full time in 2011."

Placing equal fifth today were Royden Bryson (EL) and Klee Strachan (Winkelspruit) both of whom were eliminated during the Semifinals, taking home a respectable R34 112 each.

After an impressive victory over Damien Fahrenfort (Dbn) during the quarterfinals, Bryson proved no match for Smith during their Semifinal. Smith put some tubes to good use, turning the tables against Bryson by rapidly notching up 7.33 and 7.5 scores, forcing Bryson to settle for second.

2008 ASP Africa Pro Junior Champion Klee Strachan found himself at the bitter end of a seesaw battle against Grant, the pair of South Coast surfers going toe-to-toe with almost identical scores. Eventually it was the fast, flashy surfing from Grant that earned him a 7.17 to bump Strachan off the leader's board, sailing into the final.

Fahrenfort secured his win for the biggest aerial manoeuvre while De Vries took home the goods for the most radical manoeuvre. Emslie won the award for the most powerful manoeuvre.

Crowds flocked to Ballito's golden sands as sunshine and blue skies provided an idyllic setting for the final day of South Africa's longest running surfing competition.

Tune in to East Coast Radio for all the updates on the Mr Price Pro and if you didn't make it down to the beach you can catch all the news and check out some of the incredible imagery on www.mrpricepro.com

Mr Price Pro Final Results:
1 - Jordy Smith (ZAF) 15.43
2 - Casey Grant (ZAF) 12.43

Semifinals Results
SF 1: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 14.83 def Royden Bryson (ZAF) 11.50
SF 2: Casey Grant (ZAF) 13.34 def Klee Strachan (ZAF) 11.16

Remaining Quarterfinals Results
QF 2: Royden Bryson (ZAF) 11.00 def Damien Fahrenfort (ZAF) 8.60
QF 3: Casey Grant (ZAF) 14.50 def Travis Logie (ZAF) 12.20
QF 4: Klee Strachan (ZAF) 8.74 def Brendon Gibbens (ZAF) 8.64

GRINDTV Newswire via The ASP: BALLITO, KwaDukuza/South Africa (Wednesday, July 7, 2010) - A powerful south west swell brought on by the arrival of the highly anticipated cold front, brought with it plenty for surfers to contend with at the ASP 5-Star Mr Price Pro Ballito today.



Shifting peaks, crunching sets and cavernous barrels saw a few surfers shine in the unsettled conditions.

2000 Mr Price Pro Champion Taylor Knox (USA) shone brightest in his Round of 96 clash, the Californian's smooth, polished on the rail carves and critical in the pocket surfing, setting the tone for the day. Knox scored a pair of 8.17 and a 9.57 (out of ten) rides for the highest heat total of the event, a 17.74 (out of 20.00).



"It looks really playful out there but it's not at all, I went over the falls twice- I haven't done that in a while," Knox said. "The wave has definitely got some power but it suits me and I'm just happy to be here."

With a convincing heat win as well as VIP tickets to the FIFA Germany versus Spain Semifinal Match in Durban tonight, it was a great day in Africa for the Californian surfer.



"I'm extremely excited because I've never been to a soccer game anywhere," Knox said. "I'm still not sure who I will be supporting, I've got great friends in Spain so it will be hard not to cheer for Spain cos they're such nice people but if I had to make a prediction for the final, I would say Germany versus the Netherlands because they're looking so strong."



South Africa's favorite surfing son, ASP World No. 2 Jordy Smith (Dbn) managed to keep his board in one piece as he destroyed countless wave faces during his round of 48 heat. Smith's unrivaled power and control earning an 8.17 followed by a near perfect 9.00 for a brilliant barrel ride to end off the heat.



"I got to ride a new board today because I've been breaking a lot of boards lately so hopefully this one lasts for the contest," Smith said. "There are some gaping barrels out there but it is difficult to find a good one and if you do it's definitely a diamond in the rough."



Manfred Adrio (Dbn) surprised even himself when he came flying out of the highest scoring barrel ride of the day, posting the highest wave score of the competition so far, an excellent 9.83 (out of ten).



"That was the last thing I expected," Adrio said. "I took off on that wave and the only thing I could do was pull in. Luckily I had enough speed, it just stayed open and I came flying out, it was totally unexpected."



With some judges scoring it a perfect ten, Adrio cemented his heat win with a 15.16 (out of 20.00) heat total to defeat Brendon Gibbens, Lee Bisset and Remi Petersen.



"I've never had the highest score at any contest, ever so that was a gift, I'm really stoked," Adrio said.

Inspired by Adrio's performance, Rudy Palmboom Jnr (Bluff) put in some of his own tube time in the following heat, threading in and out of a wide North Coast barrel to earn the second near perfect score (9.17) of the day.



"I saw Manfred's barrel and I thought there definitely are some bombs out there," Palmboom said. "I got lucky because I saw this thing heaving at me and building down the line and I just went for it."



Palmboom defeated Klee Strachan, the pair eliminating Mbongeni Hlengwa and Syabonga Khoza.

Australia's Anthony Walsh looked polished in his round of 96 heat. Reading the wave intuitively Walsh unleashed some committed backhand snaps and controlled floaters to win the heat with a 14.43 (out of 20.00), advancing ahead of Allan Johns (Ballito).



Giving himself an early birthday present, Casey Grant who turns 21 today, secured a well-deserved first place finish over Andrew Banks. Grant's risk and commitment earned him an 8.17 (out of ten) as his top scoring ride, enough to see him advance in first place.



2006 Mr Price Pro Champion Ricky Basnett (Bluff) looked comfortable in the punchy conditions similar to those at his home break Anstey's, washing away his nerves with a win over David Van Zyl, Paul Canning and Stevan Rice.



Among those also advancing through the round of 96 were Matthew Bromley (CT) who took the win over last minute second place finisher Mathew Kruger (Dbn), Damien Fahrenfort (CT) who advanced ahead of Kyle Beach (DBN), Beyrick De Vries (Umhl) who did well to win his heat over Shane Thorne (Bluff) while Greg Emslie (EL) secured a well-deserved win advancing along with Kyle Lane.



ASP World No. 13 Chris Davidson (AUS) found himself in a tough battle against Shaun Jobert in the round of 48. The lead changing hands a number of times before Davidson edged out his local counterpart, the pair advancing into the Round of 24.



Eleven heats of the Round of 96 were completed followed by six heats of the Round of 48. The next call will take place at 07H00 tomorrow.

Tune in to East Coast Radio for live updates on the Mr Price Pro each day and if you can't make it down to the beach you can watch all the action live on the web at www.mrpricepro.com

The ASP first Prime event in the U.S. provided ample opportunity to survey the pro surfing landscape, which, along with the rest of the word, is being rocked pretty hard by changes from outside and in. Here are six big takeaways from a dramatic week in surfing.

1. 2010 is already a game changer of a season.
The new ASP ratings system has changed the entire dynamic of climbing the ranks. Even for those out on the World Tour, the importance of Prime events like the Lowers Pro essentially makes this a 19 event season. Job security at the top goes out the window in a few months, when the field gets reduced from 45 to 32. And next year staying around gets even tougher. That may be bad for some surfers, but it's good for fans who want to see the best talent have a crack at the top.

2. The young Brazilians can't be ignored -- and shouldn't be.
While they continue to be dismissed by haters, the young Brazilians have their heads down, their wings out, and yes, even their rails buried. As a result, Adriano de Souza, Jadson Andre, Gabriel Medina and even Heitor Alvez won a lot of fans this week. And they're likely to earn a lot more in the years ahead. Go ahead and pick their styles apart if you want. But when you're done, just be sure to apply the same microscope to the glossy American and Australian stars who -- don't kid yourself -- are jumping on their horses and hopping along, too. Glass houses.

3. There's some spark left in Andy. But is it combustible?
Andy Irons is slowly, steadily returning to form. His surfing has improved with each heat surfed this year, and Lowers was no exception. There's still rust, and an inexplicable lack of confidence, but if Irons' temperature continues to rise he should be able to burn it off. That said, he's in the pressure cooker already with two CT events left to go before the ASP cutoff. He's currently in a five way tie for 23rd, which isn't nearly as safe as it sounds.

4. The judging has improved, but still needs more judging.
The tour's new progressive judging criteria is -- by all accounts -- a very positive step that's pushing above-the-lip performance to incredibly new highs. Yet it's clear many of these new moves need to be better understood, examined and scored using tested and timeless pillars of performance all good surfing is judged by: speed, flow, and power. The fundamentals never change. The baby can't be thrown out with the bath water. Weak aerials do exist just like weak turns, and the scale needs to be proportional.

5. Prime events are arguably premiere.
After Friday's tremendous assault on Lowers (where global talent met perfect waves) there's no need to sell these events -- they sell themselves. Just ask Kelly Slater, who tried unsuccessfully to get in as a late entry. If you're a surfing fan, Prime events are arguably the best to watch. Specifically the four man heats (read: lots of action) in the Round of 96 and 48, where the hottest rising stars are matched against the current rulers of the top ranks. Watching John Florence and Kolohe Andino battle Dane Reynolds and Andy Irons is like peering through a big, bay window to the future.

6. Jordy Smith might just go the distance.
Jordy Smith is sitting in the number two spot behind Slater. Though we haven't seen it yet, he's no slouch at Jeffreys Bay. He lost to Dane there last year, and Taj during his rookie season. But his solid ranking, smarter competing and improved surfing all point toward a breakout this time around. This kid has the confidence (and just the right amount of arrogance) to give this current run results some legs. And if he keeps running, well, Kelly Slater's going to have to work that much harder for his 10th world title.

John John Florence -- Hawaii's super grom -- handed Dane Reynolds a dose of his own medicine Friday, landing a dramatic air reverse 360 that helped knock Reynolds out of the Nike 6.0 Lowers Pro. Reynolds was wave starved for much of the heat, and despite a late charge on the lefts, he fell short in the end. Aussie Blake Thornton won the heat with a solid carving performance.

This is the second event in a row that Reynolds has been shot down by the same kind of progressive surfing he's famous for. And John John isn't the only young gun dishing out the pain.

Kolohe Andino, California's 16-year-old golden boy, is making the most of his wild card opportunity. On Thursday, Brother advanced out of his Round of 96 heat in the closing moments, after sticking a solid aerial reverse, edging Marco Polo and Brian Toth.

He followed it up with a much-more impressive showing Friday morning against some powerful ASP standouts, including Billabong Pro winner Jadson Andre and Adam Robertson, who finished 2nd place at Bells in 2009 as a wild card.





Kolohe and Jadson thrilled the crowd with a nice little aerial dogfight in their heat, with Kolohe getting the better of an exchange where they split the peak.

While Jadson threw some beautiful carves, Brother blew his tail out on his first big turn, and finished with an aerial reverse.

But Jadson got his revenge in the closing moments, landing one of the craziest inverted aerial reverses imaginable. The 9.0 he earned thrust Andre past Andino for the heat win, but both surfers advanced.

Oddly enough, both Andino and Andre lost early in the Oakley Pro Junior earlier this week, due to interference calls. Now they're busy taking out their frustration on the big boys.

After knocking out Dane Reynolds, Florence came out on top in an afternoon duel with three-time world champion Andy Irons in Round Four. Both surfers advanced out of the three man heat, but there was clearly a lot of pride at stake in the perfect Lowers conditions.

Spectators at Trestles on Friday were witness to what was arguably the most progressive surfing even seen in competition. Lower's skate-park conditions and the most talented field of competitors ever assembled for an event of this size has been a powerful mix.

The major theme has been the rise of a new generation, which, thanks to the ASP's new format, is getting a crack at taking on the elite World Tour surfers at a dream tour location like Trestles. They're taking the opportunity to send some warning shots. Florence's progressive aerial assault carried him over the top of Andy's hard carves, but Andino ended up losing in Round Four to tour veterans Chris Davidson and Ace Buchan.