Australian surfer Owen Wright beats out 10-time world champion Kelly Slater in the final of the Quiksilver Pro New York in a picture perfect day in Long Beach, N.Y.
An incoming swell from Hurricane Katia provided ideal conditions for the last day of the Quiksilver Pro in Long Beach, the first ASP World Championship Tour (WCT) event held on the east coast. The event carried a record setting $1 million prize purse.
Wright, 21, appeared in his first WCT contest final. He caught three high scoring waves that included high performance cutbacks and lofty aerials that built a commanding lead over Kelly Slater.
There were more than 30,000 Slater fans on the beach. Slater's first wave, one of two needed to win the final, combined Kelly's classic style and power with strong bottom turns and powerful carving maneuvers bringing high scores from the judges, but Slater could not secure a second high scoring wave, falling on multiple aerial attempts as the clock ticked down. With approximately two minutes remaining the 39-year-old Slater caught a promising left . He dropped in, hit his bottom turn, gaining speed and boosted high above the wave's curl, an aerial he couldn't land this time. Coming to the surface after wiping out, Slater's fate was sealed and his surfboard broken in two pieces popped up beside him.
For Wright, his first top finish was timed perfectly, this win brought $300,000, the largest award in the history of competitive surfing.
