In a year that's seen an overall numerical demise of Hawaiian standouts on the World Tour--there were only four Hawaiians on the men's tour and three on the women's side--the Aloha State still managed to make the best of what they had on offer. A rookie year on the CT is no rose garden, but for Kekoa Bacalso and Coco Ho, their maiden voyage on the World Tour proved less than tumultuous as the duo were both awarded Rookie of the Year honors recently from the ASP.

Bacalso has been seen as a breath of fresh air amid the stoic nature of many of his counterparts. Not only a guy you'd want to grab a beer (or 10) with, "Bam" as he's known, has shown that he's got what it takes in the water to be a formidable threat in any heat--3 foot or 10--and finished the year off at the 18th spot.

"I'm super stoked to win this award," Bacalso said. "My main goal coming into this season was to finish within the Top 27, so to claim the Rookie of the Year award is a bonus and I wasn't expecting it. Freddy P [Fredrick Patacchia] was giving me a hard time throughout the year because he and Andy [Irons] won it when they were rookies and now I guess it's Dusty's [Payne] turn."

Coco Ho's success on the tour in her rookie year was equally, if not more so, inspiring. Coming out of the gates, when most competitors would succumb to nerves or buckle under the pressure, Coco appeared calm, focused, and professional. At Snapper, the opening event of the season, she dropped a third and at the Rip Curl Pro Search in Portugal she won the damn thing, leaving her a shoe-in for Rookie of the Year and a world title contender in the Hawaiian leg.

"Coming into my rookie year, I didn't have any expectations because I was the last seed and the last to qualify," Ho said. "I kind of qualified for the World Tour accidentally and it felt great to know that entering the second-to-last event of the year that I was in contention for the Women's World Title." Although she didn't win the title, Coco solidified her name as legit contender.

In just a few short months, all of this year's accolades will be well behind the two Hawaiian standouts. With the Quik Pro just around the corner, they'll once again be facing down the world's best. And this year, with the likes of Dusty Payne and Carissa Moore making their rookie debuts and a change up in the system, there will be no room for sophomore blues.