Surfing at Huntington Beach : Thomas Trips Another Favorite : He Meets Three-Time Champion Curren in Semifinal

Marty Thomas continued to glide over the Huntington Beach surf as well as the top seeds Saturday at the Op Pro Surfing Championships.

Thomas, who is seeded 12th, pulled his second upset in a row with a 69 to 68.5 quarterfinal victory against fourth-seeded Martin Potter of England, the current world-tour points leader. Thomas upset fifth-seeded Tom Carroll of Australia in Friday’s third round.

He will meet defending Op Pro champion Tom Curren in the semifinals at 8 a.m. today. The finals are scheduled for 10:30 a.m.

Curren, who is from Santa Barbara but has lived in France for the past five months, advanced with an 81.0 to 72.5 victory against Mike Parsons of Laguna Beach. Richie Collins of Newport Beach and Sunny Garcia of Waianae, Hawaii, will meet in the other semifinal.

The semifinal matchup with Curren, a two-time world champion aiming for his fourth Op Pro title, will give Thomas a chance for revenge. Curren won their only other meeting a few years ago.

“I’m going to have to surf really well,” said Thomas, who is from Sunset Beach, Hawaii. “He’s the best surfer in the world in my opinion. I really have nothing to lose.

“It would be a dream come true to take down Tom Curren at the Op Pro.”

Thomas held off Potter in the closing seconds to earn one of the closest victories so far at the championships. He led by only three-tenths of a point when Potter caught a wave with 15 seconds left.

Judges add the scores of the top four waves to determine a surfer’s overall total.

Potter scored 13.8 out of a possible 30 points, but it wasn’t enough to improve his overall score. Thomas picked up a wave just before the final horn, scoring a 10.5 and erasing an earlier score of 10.3 to increase his lead by two-tenths.

“I thought about holding him off the (first) wave because I had priority,” Thomas said. “It was a tough move. If I would have taken the first wave and slipped up, then he could have had the second one. Fortunately, we both caught one.”

Thomas said he had to keep his composure in the final minute. He knew the competition was close because he listened to the scores over the public-address system.

“I get that kind of composure from golf,” said Thomas, who has an 18 handicap. “If I fluff one shot, I can always make the next one. Surfing is all about holding your composure. That was a strong force in my success last year on the tour.”

Thomas, 21, jumped from 44th on the tour in 1987 to 12th last year. A four-year pro, he hopes he can get his first victory on the tour at the Op Pro.

“I was fifth at the Op last year,” he said. “I’ve always done well at events in California.”

So has Garcia, who beat Rob Bain of Australia, 85.1 to 82.6, in the quarterfinals. Bain’s elimination marked only the fourth time an Australian hasn’t reached the semifinal of an Assn. of Surfing Professionals event.

“If I would have lost, everyone would have remembered me as the guy who was bumped out by the Australian,” Garcia said. “It was a make-or-break heat.”

Collins defeated Ted Robinson of Manhattan Beach, 90.5 to 65, to make his first semifinal appearance at the Op Pro. Collins said he has used the Op Pro to experiment with new maneuvers.

“I’ve been doing all different kinds,” he said. “I started copying Potter because he’s been winning. I’ve changed my style a lot in the last eight weeks. I’m getting more comfortable with it.”

Garcia said he and Collins have similar styles, which should make the semifinal interesting.

“He’s a lot like me,” Garcia said. “We’re both stubborn people. We have our moments where we don’t agree on things. If we both have our butts in gear it should be a great (semifinal).”

Frieda Zamba, a four-time world champion, defeated Michelle Donoghoe of Australia, 57.5 to 37, in the women’s semifinals. Zamba, of Flagler Beach, Fla., will meet Kim Mearig of Carpinteria in the finals at 9 a.m. today. Mearig defeated Pam Burridge of Australia, 42.5 to 34.3, in the other semifinal.

“The most important thing for me was to get a wave where I could do more than one maneuver,” said Zamba, the 1986 Op Pro winner. “The waves had no form when they did come in. I wasn’t picky but I had to be pretty careful. Getting one (wave) to the beach made the difference for me.”

Saturday’s results

Men

Marty Thomas (Hawaii) def. Martin Potter (England) 69-68.5. Tom Curren (Santa Barbara) def. Mike Parsons (Laguna Beach) 81-72.5. Richie Collins (Newport Beach) def. Ted Robinson (Manhattan Beach) 90.5-65. Sunny Garcia (Hawaii) def. Rob Bain (Australia) 85.1-82.6.

Juniors

Rob Machado (Cardiff) def. Kasey Curtis (San Juan Capistrano) 79.8-74.3. Kelly Slater (Florida) def. Geoff Faoro (Carpinteria) 66.5-43.

Women

Frieda Zamba (Florida) def. Michelle Donoghoe (Australia) 57.5-37. Kim Mearig (Carpinteria) def. Pam Burridge (Australia) 42.5-34.3.