The Gold Coast Pro 2025: Day Three

The eight heats of the Women's Round of 16 and first eight of the Men's Round of 32 were knocked off today in surf that started off silky and head high then trended to weird and sideshore as the day went on.

Hyperbole was red-lining for the opening heats so a little housekeeping is in order for record-keeping purposes. Despite even the normally sober-minded Ronnie Blakey calling the bank epic, it's very far from that. The fact that on a clean E/SE swell with a dropping tide Burleigh Heads was not able to offer up a single decent tube-ride is testament to that. Tight to the rock on the high, then spread out and straight on the low with an outer bank popping off and robbing energy on any rogue sets that came through. This bank is firmly in the utilitarian part of the spectrum; which is to say right in the middle, with epic at one end and scoured out rock breaks at the other. Wave quality will not be baked in as we head into the pointy end of the comp.

It still offended our sensibilities though to see clean point waves wasted as we did in the first heat when world number one Gabby Bryan took a disastrous and bone-headed strategy into the clash with Luana Silva. Why she decided, as world number one with all the momentum behind her actual surfing, to paddle up and down the point playing priority games whilst out of position for the head-high waves peeling down the point is still beyond me. Presumably Dog Marsh has to shoulder some blame for the epic fail. All she had to do was catch two clean waves and let her surfing, currently so in favour with the public and judges, do the rest. By the time she had finished playing games, Luana already had a couple of good rides, which put Gabby out of the rhythm with the sets and the B-grade waves she did catch were over surfed with a too heavy-handed approach. It was not a good start to the day.

Gabby (WSL/Shield)

Much better heats followed. Caz Marks was simply outclassed by Vahine Fierro who now joins other goofys on tour (well, Sawyer Lindblad) who have made Caz's safety first, slightly awkward backhand go from what seemed an unstoppable force into what now looks more like a liability. Six comps in and Caz is yet to crack an excellent score. This is a reflection of a judging panel (rightfully) asking for something more.

Whatever frustrations had been engendered in viewers after Gabby Bryan's heat were swiftly soothed and turned into joy by Molly Picklum. There's a demarcation in women's surfing between those who hit and release with an arms up style that releases pressure (that's most of them) and those who can compress into the turn and carve against the grain, holding the pressure through the turn - notably Caity Simmers, Steph Gilmore, and Molly Picklum. Pickles surfed her opening ride almost perfectly in my view for an 8. Carving, getting fins up and over, and belting a closeout. The most aesthetically pleasing ride of the day, even if Erin Brooks took the chocolates for the highest score.

Molly (WSL/Shield)

It wasn't a close heat with Bella Kenworthy stranded way back when the siren sounded.

Steph Gilmore and Caity Simmers in glassy Queensland point surf threatened to be one of those 'where were you when...' moments, but it didn't quite live up to billing when the sets went sleepy.

The current world champ was alive, but in nappies and making cooing noises, when Gilmore got her first title in 2007. Hadn't started primary school by the time Steph had four.

Even the great Joe Turpel, the greatest gaslighter the world has ever known, slips up occasionally and tells the unvarnished truth from time to time. He “mis-spoke” when he said Steph had “come out of retirement” before quickly correcting himself to, “off a hiatus”.

With two silky sixes Steph finished ahead of Simmers who looked incredibly hesitant on a final ride needing only a 4.83.

Steph (WSL/Ryder)

It's as unlikely to imagine Simmers getting four world titles in a row as it is Gilmore coming back to full time competition next year. Steph continues to play coy in the media but let it be known in The Guardian that if she did come back she would be gunning for a ninth title and wouldn't be there just to be “another jersey”. She even flagged Slater's eleven titles as a potential goal although admitted, “I don’t think I could do that. But, I don’t know…!”

The tour that Caity Simmers won her title in is vastly different to the one Steph won four in a row on. No Teahupoo, no Pipeline, no Fiji, no J-Bay etc etc. How much of Steph's first four titles did you watch? Be honest.

You saw a few heats maybe at Snapper or Bells, maybe some Honolua Bay at the end. No-one saw much of it, because there wasn't much to be seen. In 2009, Bells ended at the end of Mar and the next comp was not until the end of August. In 2010, that gap extended from April to October. Being a women's professional surfer during this era was basically a part-time job. Not to take anything away from Steph, but with eight titles and absolutely nothing left to prove, does she really think she would be competitive on a tour with Chopes, Cloudbreak, and a finale at Pipeline?

Like Kelly at Pipe, Steph will be competitive for a decade more at right-hand pointbreaks, but that dominance is deceptive.

Gilmore into the Quarters against a rampaging Erin Brooks who will not treat her with the deference Simmers did.

Sawyer (WSL/Shield)

Surf was deteriorating as the men took to the water. Less frequent sets and a nagging southerly that started to disrupt the sections. Rides were spread between the point bank and beachie section. Yago Dora gave an indication the Brazilian aerialists would have no problem dispensing with pointbreak protocols and taking to the air, on one turn closeouts if need be.

His lofted punt garnered an 8 and dispatched Ed Groggia, almost certainly ending his pro career once he gets cut at Margs. Doing the Challenger now is becoming a luxury privilege, with many simply deciding it is not financially viable. Whether Ryan Crosby can configure the feeder tours into something viable both as career paths and sporting products people want to watch is yet to be seen.

Toledo looks at head-high sandbar surf the way John Florence looks at Pipeline. He sees within it a scope to express his highest talents and flex his dominance in ways that a large chunk of the fan base sees as arrogant and problematic. 'How can he be fist pumping and punching his chest over beachbreaks when he sits in the channel at Pipe?' goes the refrain.

Toledo seems to have made peace with this apparent paradox and truly does not seem to care. And he did express his highest talent at Burleigh today. Slicing and chucking buckets while surfing at a different speed to Crosby Colapinto and throwing the loftiest air of the day for a 9.43. Sure, it seemed high at the time, but looked at in the context of the day no-one else came close to it.

Jake Marshall was asked if witnessing the Toledo punt had influenced his approach in the following heat. I'm paraphrasing but he said he had learned more from watching the losing performance of Crosby Colapinto who kept his board in the water and on rail. That seemed a strange contrarian position but Jake Marshall won easily and the wisdom of that approach was playing out as he spoke.

In the water was the tour's premier rail surfer, Ethan Ewing, and he was being influenced by Toledo. Not once but twice Ewing took to the air. I can't recall an air in the previous year from Ewing. Not ever. It did not play well for him. He fell, his scores were lowered. Morgan Ciblic, despite a buckled board, steamrolled him with unrestrained rail and vertical surfing.

Ethan (WSL/Ryder)

That does, in a sense, justify the swagger of Toledo. He can do things in the pressure of competition his peers cannot.

Mamiya snuck past Cal Robson and Alejo out-aggressed a forlorn looking Rio Waida.

We pulled up one heat shy of the battle between wildcard Julian Wilson and Italo Ferreira.

Jules does have the aerial arsenal to match it with the Brazilians.

Steph and Morgs alive in the draw, Jules hopefully to follow.

It might not be as pretty as today once this sou'east surge hits it, but there will be plenty of surf.

No-one will lose by being stranded out the back with no waves and that in itself is an exciting prospect.

// STEVE SHEARER

Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM Women's Round of 16 Results: 
HEAT 1: Luana Silva (BRA) 12.84 DEF. Gabriela Bryan (HAW) 12.57
HEAT 2: Vahine Fierro (FRA) 12.43 DEF. Caroline Marks (USA) 11.50
HEAT 3: Molly Picklum (AUS) 16.27 DEF. Bella Kenworthy (USA) 10.83
HEAT 4: Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) 15.50 DEF. Sawyer Lindblad (USA) 15.07
HEAT 5: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 12.84 DEF. Caitlin Simmers (USA) 12.50
HEAT 6: Erin Brooks (CAN) 16.26 DEF. Lakey Peterson (USA) 10.50
HEAT 7: Isabella Nichols (AUS) 14.50 DEF. Sophie McCulloch (AUS) 10.93
HEAT 8: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 14.10 DEF. Tyler Wright (AUS) 10.47

Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM Men's Round of 32 Results [Heats 1 - 8]: 
HEAT 1: Yago Dora (BRA) 13.67 DEF. Edgard Groggia (BRA) 11.94
HEAT 2: Alan Cleland (MEX) 13.60 DEF. Connor O'Leary (JPN) 11.17
HEAT 3: Filipe Toledo (BRA) 17.87 DEF. Crosby Colapinto (USA) 15.33
HEAT 4: Jake Marshall (USA) 14.40 DEF. Samuel Pupo (BRA) 13.83
HEAT 5: Morgan Cibilic (AUS) 11.47 DEF. Ethan Ewing (AUS) 10.10
HEAT 6: Seth Moniz (HAW) 12.50 DEF. Jackson Bunch (HAW) 8.26
HEAT 7: Barron Mamiya (HAW) 10.77 DEF. Callum Robson (AUS) 10.66
HEAT 8: Alejo Muniz (BRA) 13.47 DEF. Rio Waida (INA) 10.83