Huntington Beach’s Kanoa Igarashi looks to make history at U.S. Open of Surfing

The men’s and women’s points leaders on the World Surf League’s Championship Tour wear bright, yellow jerseys in their heats, signifying their place among the best competitive surfers on the planet.

When Huntington Beach’s Kanoa Igarashi paddles out for his heats this week in the U.S. Open of Surfing, the 21-year-old Huntington Beach local might as well wear a jersey with a big, bright bull’s-eye on it.

He’s ready to begin his quest for an unprecedented third consecutive U.S. Open of Surfing title, which would best fellow Huntington local Brett Simpson’s back-to-back crowns in 2009-10.

Igarashi will begin his attempt no sooner than Monday in his Round 2 heat against Cam Richards, Thiago Camarao and a fourth surfer yet to be determined. The schedule beyond Sunday is fluid and still to be determined.

But make no mistake about it, all eyes will be on Igarashi, and not just the thousands of onlookers who will swarm to the south side of the HB Pier to watch.

There also are his fellow competitors, those who aim to knock King Kanoa off his throne.

Igarashi is seeded No. 2 in the contest, based on his No. 10 finish in last year’s CT season. The top seed is Santa Barbara’s Conner Coffin, who was No. 7 last year. The third seed is San Clemente’s Koholo Andino, who finished No. 11 last year but is currently ranked No. 1 in the world.

Then there’s San Clemente’s Griffin Colapinto, who is the No. 7 seed based on his No. 18 finish last year. Igarashi and Colapinto engaged in an epic final last year at the Open, Igarashi winning with a spectacular finish.

For sure, this is Igarashi’s contest, his wave, his contest to lose. And it’s been impressive to see, even for someone like Andino, who is a phenom in his own right, now in his eighth season on the CT even though he’s just 25.

“He’s definitely a force already, putting up big point totals in each event,” Andino said of Igarashi. “It’s exciting to watch and inspiring just because he’s so young and came out of nowhere.”

He really hasn’t come out of nowhere, considering he’s been a recognizable presence in the water since he was 5 years old. But what has been notable is his swift rise to becoming a legitimate world title threat.

During Igarashi’s first few years on the CT, he struggled early in the season in places like Australia and South Africa, before finishing the season strong in places like Portugal and the North Shore of Oahu.

This season, though, he has started fast, with a contest crown in Bali, two equal-fifth-place finishes and no finish lower than equal-ninth.

“It seemed like he really made his spots on tour, the ones that were tougher for him, his strengths,” Andino said. “A spot like J-Bay (South Africa) two years ago, it seemed like he was having a hard time and now he’s one of the guys to beat out there. It’s inspiring to see the work that he’s put in and the confidence he has.”

But he’ll have his work cut out for him this week, with plenty of world-class surfers looking to knock him off his throne. That includes someone like Coffin, who is always looking to up his game.

“Trying to improve and mix it up, keep it fresh,” Coffin, 26, said. “I think that’s something I’ve learned, it’s my fourth year on tour and I think you get to the point where you have to keep bringing in something fresh, whether it’s a different board construction that gives you a little flair, or bringing in a new turn and little different approach. Keep the judges on their toes a little bit. I think they get used to your surfing and they know what we’re capable of and it seems they can hold that against you in a weird way sometimes.”

Besides Andino, Coffin and Colapinto, there are others to keep an eye on. The Brazilians always bring an impressive contingent, even though Filipe Toledo, who has had some intense head-to-head heats with Igarashi and is a two-time Open champ, is not here.

Adriano de Souza may be past his prime at age 32, but he’s a former world champ (2015) and has a history of performing well at the Open, with two third-place finishes and two fifth-place finishes, including a third-place finish as recently as 2016.

Another surfer of note is Hiroto Ohhara, who has dropped off recently and is seeded 55th in the contest, but he won the Open in 2015.

JUNIORS DIVISION UNDERWAY

While the main men’s event gets started Sunday, the Junior men (18 and under) got the Open going Saturday with two rounds in the 64-man contest.

The top three seeds — No. 1 Crosby Colapinto of San Clemente, No. 2 Kade Matson of San Clemente, and No. 3 Taro Watanabe of Malibu — all advanced through to the round of 16 later this week.

Others who advanced to the round of 16 include Taj Lindblad, Robert Grilho, Joh Azuchi, Caleb Tancred, Malakai Martinez, Tommy Coleman, Hagan Johnson, Dakoda Walters, Sam Reidy, Alan Cleland, Jett Schilling, Mateus Herdy, and Tiago Carrique.

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