John Florence Wins World Cup Of Surfing 2011

Hawaii’s John John Florence, who surfed in his first Triple Crown event at age 12, realized his childhood dream by winning the Vans World Cup at Sunset Beach. In the final, Florence led a spectacular tube-riding battle in perfect 10-foot surf against Michel Bourez (Tahiti, 2nd), Adam Melling (Australia, 3rd), and Hank Gaskell (Maui, 4th). His two-wave heat total of 17 points (9.5, 7.5) eclipsed the field. Sunset turned on like a giant wave machine, pumping out a succession of rides that saw every finalist get barreled. But Florence’s performance was astounding as he seemingly picked off waves at will with every one of them offering an impossible amount of tube time.

John John placed fifth two weeks ago at Haleiwa, and takes the lead on the coveted Vans Triple Crown. The Billabong Pipe Masters will get underway on December 8. “This is my first 6 star Prime win, it’s at home, it’s one of my home breaks and all my family and friends are here, so it’s one of the best moments of my life, for sure. It means everything. I’ve watched these guys since I was so little growing up here and coming to events when I was six years old, getting their autographs. I’m having fun, I surf for a living and that’s a dream in itself.”

Florence, who joined the World Tour for the first time just a few months ago, is a favorite at his home break at the next contest, the Billabong Pipe Masters. He’s already won two contests at the Pipeline this year, and probably knows the break as well as (or better) than most of the best surfers in the world. “I can’t wait for Pipe,” he said. “If I won that, I don’t even know what I’d say.”

Finals:
1st – John John Florence (HAW) 17.00 pts
2nd – Michel Bourez (PYF) 12.30 pts
3rd – Adam Melling (AUS) 11.96 pts
4th – Hank Gaskell (HAW) 11.53 pts