New world No 1 Jordy Smith has won his first ever ASP elite title after beating Adam Melling in the final of the Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay.
Surfing in front of his home fans the South African has been in fine form all week, and spurred on by the blaring Vuvuzelas dominated the final from the outset. Smith used his knowledge of the bay to post scores of 8.90 and 9.03 for a combined 17.93 out of a possible 20.
'This is the best day of my life' – Jordy
“This is the best day of my life,” Smith said. “The crowd on the beach has been supporting me the last few days and hearing the cheers and the Vuvuzelas just gets me fired up to perform. It feels like they’re pushing me along. I couldn’t have done it without them.
“I knew the swell was dying and I had to take advantage of every wave that came through. Adam is such a dangerous surfer. He’s been in form all day and I knew that if he got the waves, he would get the scores. I went out there knowing I had to open up strong.”
However, Smith almost didn’t make the final at all. After dispatching Adriano de Souza in the quarter-finals, the 22-year-old came up against Bede Durbidge in the semis – with the Australian leading with four minutes of their clash remaining.
Facing a battle to stay alive in the competition, Smith caught two waves in under a minute and unloaded a barrage of aerials and forehand blasts to claw his way back into the lead.
“I’m still not too sure what happened – it’s all a blur,” Smith said afterwards. “I got that first one where I did the little grab air that I didn’t think was good, but the judges scored the whole wave pretty well. Then I backed it up and put everything I had into it.”
Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay Final Results:
1 - Jordy Smith (ZAF) 17.93
2 - Adam Melling (AUS) 10.00
Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay Semifinal Results:
SF 1: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 14.83 def. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 14.40
SF 2: Adam Melling (AUS) 14.00 def. Taj Burrow (AUS) 10.67
Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay Quarterfinal Results:
QF 1: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 16.43 def. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 9.20
QF 2: Bede Durbidge (AUS) 12.17 def. Sean Holmes (ZAF) 11.83
QF 3: Taj Burrow (AUS) 11.00 def. Dane Reynolds (USA) 3.66
QF 4: Adam Melling (AUS) 16.43 def. Damien Hobgood (USA) 5.67
Current ASP World Tour overall standings (after South Africa):
1. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 28500 pts
2. Taj Burrow (AUS) 24750 pts
3. Kelly Slater (USA) 23500 pts
4. Dane Reynolds (USA) 20000 pts
5. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 19500 pts
6. Mick Fanning (AUS) 19250 pts
7. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 18750 pts
8. Bobby Martinez (USA) 16500 pts
9. Jadson Andre (BRA) 16000 pts
10. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 14750 pts
The next stop on the 2010 ASP World Tour is the Billabong Pro Tahiti which starts on August 23. For more surfing action, click here
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