Carroll and Curren Will Meet in Today’s Surfing Semifinals

While most of Southern California sleeps soundly this morning, two gentlemen will be wide awake, lurking in the cool water just south of the Huntington Beach Pier

The unofficial world title of surfing will be decided when Tom Carroll, the world champion the last two years, and Tom Curren, the biggest name in American surfing, paddle out at 7:30. And the fact that their best-of-three-heat battle is just a semifinal matchup and won’t even decide the winner of this particular contest hardly seems to matter.

It is, in a sense, what everyone has been waiting and hoping for, even though Carroll, of Australia, is currently ranked 17th in the world and Curren, of Santa Barbara, is 14th. By the end of the the 1985-86 world tour, Carroll and Curren, who each boycotted three South African events earlier this season, likely will be near the top, fighting for the official world title.

And the organizers of the Ocean Pacific Pro Surfing Championships will have wished the seedings for their contest could have been arranged so that the sport’s biggest international name could have faced the biggest national name in the finals, which should start at about noon.

Carroll and Curren both won their third-round and quarterfinal heats Saturday to reach the semifinals. Also advancing were Australian Mark Occhilupo, ranked third in the world last year and fifth currently, and 28-year-old Hawaiian veteran Michael Ho, who was 11th in world last season but is now rated 32nd.

In the women’s semifinals, Jorja Smith of San Clemente defeated Alisa Schwarzstein of Laguna Beach and today will face Jodie Cooper of Australia. Cooper, ranked fourth in the world last year, beat Freida Zamba of Florida, who is the defending world champion and was the winner of this event in 1984.

With the tremendous support of the crowd, estimated at 75,000, Curren easily defeated Australian Barton Lynch, currently ranked No. 1 in the world, 5-0. Five judges watch each heat and decide the winner. On Curren’s last ride, he scored an 8.5, 9.0, 9.4, 9.5 and 10 (on a 10-point scale).

Following Curren’s win was a classic confrontation between Carroll and four-time world champion Mark Richards, who won the title from 1979-82. Though Carroll defeated his fellow Australian, 3-1-1, their heat was much closer. It was only Carroll’s last ride of the afternoon that allowed him to edge Richards, who at 28 is past his prime and no longer competes regularly.

In the last two quarterfinal matches, Occhilupo defeated Martin Potter of Great Britain, 4-1, in another heat that was far closer than the score indicated, and Ho beat Dave Parmenter of Cambria, Calif., currently ranked 12th, 3-1-1.

Carroll seems undeterred by an injury to his right ankle and the fact that until this year, he has never won a heat at this contest. But he is aware of the threat Curren poses.

“It’s going to be very, very tough,” he said. “I have to pull out all the stops. He’s ripping.”