SURFING OP PRO CHAMPIONSHIPS : Garcia Gets Out Early to Win the Title

HUNTINGTON BEACH —  Sunny Garcia took immediate control of the men’s final in the Op Pro Surfing Championship to win the final Sunday in front of more than 40,000 spectators.

Garcia, who’s from Honolulu and was the runner-up here last year, scored 7.0 on his first ride, followed by a 7.83, 7.37 and the heat’s best wave, an 8.10. He finished with a 30.30 overall.

“The tide was coming up and the waves weren’t glassy as they were this morning,” Garcia said. “I guess I was just fortunate I had four good waves.”

Defending champion Rob Machado of Cardiff, who chose to surf away from the other three finalist, hoped that his spot south of the pier would be as lucky as it was earlier in the day when some good south swells provided over 6-foot surf in his semifinal heat.

Unfortunately for Machado, who was third, the wind blew out many of the waves. And while Machado waited for some decent waves, Garcia was next to the pier, where surf conditions were a little better.

“Last year I lost to Rob and he did the same exact thing,” Garcia said. “This time, it looks like it didn’t pay off for Rob and I got the better waves.”

The final heat included two surfers from San Diego County: Machado of Cardiff and second-place finisher Taylor Knox of Carlsbad.

Knox, fifth-ranked on the World Tour, drew first blood in the final heat with a 5.67 ride. Knox kept the pressure on, scoring the second-best wave at 8.0. Finishing fourth was Fabio Gouveia of Brazil.

“Sunny did exactly what I would have done,” Knox said. “He got those waves right away and put the pressure on us. But I’m stoked. I’ve never gone this far at the Op Pro.”

Jeff Deffenbaugh of Huntington Beach and Shane Beschen of San Clemente were eliminated in the quarterfinal round. Deffenbaugh and Beschen will face Garcia, Knox, Machado and Gouveia at the U.S. Open in Huntington Beach starting Tuesday.

Although conditions for the men’s final were not nearly as good as they were for the women’s final Saturday, surf in the men’s quarterfinals was near perfect, with 4- to 5-foot surf.

“This is really good for Huntington,” said Machado, who had switched to a shorter 6-foot board to provide him more agility and speed for the larger waves in the quarterfinals.

Said Machado: “There are lots of peaks and you can spread out, out there. So it makes it a good surfing contest instead of a hassling [for waves] contest.”

Garcia, who’s no stranger to big surf, was also surprised by the conditions.

“It’s definitely the best surf of the week,” Garcia said. “It’s better for competition because you don’t have to fight for the waves.”

In the Op Junior, winner Tim Curran of Oxnard displayed rides like an incredible aerial--which had him airborne for two seconds. His floaters and 180’s set the 17-year-old apart from the other three competitors.

Andy Irons and Damian Hobgood finished second and third. Mikala Jones was fourth.

Sunday’s Results

Men’s finals--1. Sunny Garcia, Honolulu; 2. Taylor Knox, Carlsbad; 3. Rob Machado, Cardiff; 4. Fabio Gouveia, Brazil.

Semifinals

Heat 1--1. Machado; 2. Knox, Cardiff; 3. Egan, Australia; 4. Kaipo Jaquias, Waipahu, Hawaii. Heat 2--1. Garcia, Honolulu; 2. Gouveia; 3. Nathan Webster, Australia; 4. Renan Rocha, Brazil.

Men’s quarterfinals

Heat--1. Knox,; 2. Egan; 3. Chris Gallagher, Santa Cruz; 4. Jake Spooner, Australia. Heat 2--1. Jaquias, ; 2. Machado,; 3. Flavio Padaratz, Brazil; 4. Conan Hayes, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. Heat 3--1. Webster; 2. Gouveia; 3. Peter Mel, Santa Cruz; 4. Shane Beschen, San Clemente. Heat 4--1. Rocha; 2. Garcia; 3. Jeff Deffenbaugh, Huntington Beach; 4. Kalani Robb, Kapolei, Hawaii.

Op Junior

Finals--1. Tim Curran, Oxnard; 2. Andy Irons, Hanalei, Hawaii; 3. Damian Hobgood, Satellite Beach, Fla.; 4. Mikala Jones, Honolulu.

Semifinals

Heat 1--1. Irons; 2. Curran; 3. Cam Anderson, Cocoa Beach, Fla.; 4. Jon Rose, Laguna Beach. Heat 2--1. Hobgood; 2. Jones; 3. Mike Reilly, Seal Beach; 4. Billy Oswald, Huntington Beach.