Andersen Catches Early Waves, Sits on Top of Surfing World
Lisa Andersen of Ormond Beach, Fla., made some early radical maneuvers and then used sound strategy in the 45-minute final heat Saturday to win the U.S. Open of Surfing at the Huntington Beach pier.
Andersen defeated former world champion Frieda Zamba of Flagler Beach, Fla., who won the Op Pro last weekend, also at Huntington Beach.
Whereas Zamba started by taking fewer waves in an effort to pace herself, Anderson was less selective and surfed aggressively on the small waves she caught.
With 10 minutes to go, Andersen had caught 14 waves, one short of the maximum allowed. So, she paddled around the priority buoy and positioned herself near Zamba to try to stop her rival from getting a tournament-winning wave.
The strategy worked as Zamba failed to get the 7.33 needed to win.
In the longboarding final, Colin McPhillips of San Clemente defeated Joel Tudor of Cardiff, ending his eight-meet winning streak.
Men’s surfing continues today with quarterfinals at 9 a.m, semifinals at 11 a.m and the finals at 12:45 p.m.
Go beyond the scoreboard
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