Tony Heff / WSL
Aussies Molly Picklum, Jack Robionson Sweep Hurley Pro Sunset Beach
From start to finish, Australia’s Molly Picklum and Jack Robinson dominated the Hurley Pro Sunset Beach, and in pristine six- to eight-foot surf on finals day, the two were unstoppable enroute to the top of the podium. For Picklum, who took out North Shore local hero Bettylou Sakura Johnson in the final, it was her second straight win at Sunset. As a result she takes over the number one ranking in the world.
And for Robinson, who made short work of Japan’s Kanoa Igarashi in a lopsided final, the win establishes him as an early world title contender and gives him a ton of confidence and momentum in an Olympic year. He now sits number two in the world behind Hawaii’s John John Florence, who will be in the yellow leader’s jersey heading into the next tour stop in Portugal.
With the first two Championship Tour events of the 2024 season in the books, some early storylines are already starting to percolate. For starters, it sure looks like the race for the women's world title is going to come down to Picklum and California’s Caity Simmers, who’s now number two in the world. With Carissa Moore and Stephanie Gilmore out of the picture this year, the two winningest women in surfing over the last decade, the future appears to be now.
Australia's Jack Robinson in deep on finals day at Sunset Beach.
Brent Bielmann / WSL
Conversely, the men's world title race is a bit of a head-scratcher right now. Florence still feels like the smart money, but with a quarterfinal loss at Sunset, he showed he’s vulnerable. Come the WSL Finals this September, Robinson may simply want the title more than Florence. His focus and determination are unrivaled on tour at present.
As far as national factions go, coming out of Hawaii, the Aussies and Hawaiians have to feel really good about what they accomplished. Obviously, having Picklum and Robinson win at Sunset is a big one for the crew Down Under, especially with stops at Bells and Margaret River on the not-too-distant horizon. And for the Hawaiian contingent like Florence, Sakura Johnson, Gabriel Bryan, Barron Mamiya and Seth Moniz, the state of Island surfing is strong right now.
Both the Americans and Brazilians have some work to do at the upcoming events in Portugal and Australia. The U.S. has Simmers and defending world champ Caroline Marks in the top five at the moment, but the men will have to get it together in Europe. The Brazilian Storm appears to have subsided at the moment as there are no South American surfers in either the men’s or women’s top five at present. There are only more three stops until the mid-season cut, and that's going to come up quickly. Here we go!
