Lopez, Surf Rise Up at U.S. Open Final

It was a perfect day in Surf City as waves up to 10 feet greeted the competitors in the men’s final of the Shockwave U.S. Open at Huntington Beach.

Shea Lopez of Dana Point took full advantage of the situation and won the title Sunday.

“Conditions were perfect for Huntington Beach,” said Lopez, after finishing with 23.25 points. “My strategy was paddle from pier to buoy, and from buoy to pier. And it seemed to work.”

Calling Sunday’s victory the biggest in his professional career, Lopez, 25, had the heat’s highest wave score, an 8.5. During another of Lopez’s higher scoring waves, he had four floaters and capped the ride by shooting the pier.

“I was able to get in a rhythm right away and stay in it the whole heat,” said Lopez, who won $10,000.

Hawaiian Ross Williams, who finished fourth in the heat (8.50), said there wasn’t much he could do.

“Shea was catching everything and I was catching nothing,” Williams said. “[Lopez] was in the zone and there was nothing he could do wrong.”

Rob Machado of Cardiff, who had a spectacular semifinal heat but was unable to duplicate his previous success in the final, finished second with 18 points.

Neco Padaratz of Brazil was third with 14.55.

In a quarterfinal heat, Lopez had to surf against his younger brother, Cory. However, Cory, 22, finished third and just missed advancing.

“We’ve been going at it since we were kids,” Shea Lopez said. “To tell you the truth, I surf better when he’s in my heat. He pushes me. He makes me surf better.”

Ryan Simmons, who was clawing for a wild-card spot for this week’s Gotcha Pro, took fourth in his quarterfinal heat.

Simmons, of Seal Beach, wasn’t too happy with his strategy and was unable to find his rhythm.

“I wish I could have performed better for all the people watching, but I always seemed out of position,” Simmons said. “It was just one of those days that it didn’t go my way.”

With Simmons eliminated, it came down to two surfers battling for the wild-card spot.

Padaratz, who was on the WCT last year but pulled out for personal reasons, has been trying to requalify for the tour this year. And Damien Hobgood of Satellite Beach, Fla., who has been looking to join his older brother, C.J., on the WCT.

But it was Padaratz who advanced to the final to win the wild-card berth.

In the juniors competition, Travis Logie of South Africa was first with 17.25 points. Hawaiian Fred Patacchia was second (16.15), Anthony MacDonald of Australia was third (16.05) and Bron Heussenstamm of Laguna Beach was fourth (12.50).

In the bodyboard finals, Brazilian Guilherme Tamega took advantage of the big surf to score 25.40 to win. Jeff Hubbard of Hawaii was second (19.85), Paul Cooper, also of Hawaii, third (19.20) and Billy Cummings of Cost Mesa took fourth (18.20).

Notes

Sunny Garcia suffered an injury to his knee in the quarterfinals and withdrew midway through the heat. The severity of his injury was not disclosed, however, and it was not announced whether the Hawaiian surfer would be competing in the Gotcha Pro at Huntington Beach.