Hawaiian surfer Carissa Moore has won her third WSL World Title, taking out the Target Maui Pro over Aussie starlet Sally Fitzgibbons in the final event of the season.
In clean four-to-six foot waves at Honolua Bay, Moore was in unstoppable form on finals day, gliding past south-coast surfer Tyler Wright in the quarter-finals before defeating fellow Hawaiian Alessa Quizon in the semis.
The 23-year-old capped off her fairytale year in the final, opening with a 9.50 before locking in a perfect 10 for a clean tube ride earning back-to-back victories on home turf.
“I’m so blessed,” Moore said in her post heat interview. “That was so much fun! That’s probably the most barrelled I’ve ever gotten in a contest!”
Moore was gifted the world crown after her closest rival American Courtney Conlogue lost in the fourth round to Hawaiian Coco Ho.
“It’s been a crazy day,” Moore continued. “It’s time to have a dance party!”
On the other side of the draw, Fitzgibbons was toying with the clean right-handers, claiming the highest heat score totals of the quarters and semis, with an 18.07 and an 18.20 respectively.
The 24-year-old didn’t go down lightly in the final, locking in a 9.23 and an 8.67, but couldn’t catch Moore’s 19.50 heat total.
“It is a special finish,” Fitzgibbons said. “To finish when the waves are nice and solid and the conditions are perfect, it’s a nice treat for everyone on tour after all the hard work.”
Fitzgibbons finished in third place on the final WSL rankings.
The Women’s WSL tour will break before the 2016 season, while the final event of the men’s season starts on Tuesday at Pipeline. – Jackson Barron.
Top photo of Carissa Moore from her official Facebook page.
About the author
Jackson Barron is a full time surf frother, golf geek and tennis tragic. He wears red and green with pride for his beloved South Sydney Rabbitohs and pretends he knows the rules when sitting in the crowd at the Swans games. Loves a beer and a coffee, as long as they're frothy, and should probably get a hair cut.
