Conditions at the season-opening Billabong Pro didn’t make it particularly easy for anyone to show what they are capable at Pipeline at just the second full women’s CT event there in history, but nonetheless we ended up with a final which may well be an indication of signs to come this year. Carissa Moore and Tyler Wright, boasting five of the last seven world titles between them, were the last women standing, and find themselves occupying the top two spots in the world rankings as a result – positions from which they will be hard to dislodge. Of course, there is plenty of quality nipping at their heels, and with last year’s Hurley Pro being dominated by Hawaiians, the locals in particular will be backing themselves to work their way up the standings. Let’s take a look at how the 2023 women’s Hurley Pro at Sunset Beach is shaping up.
The Favourites
Carissa Moore is in the midst of one of the best surfing careers in history, and aged 30, she’s not yet showing any signs of slowing down. She wins multiple events every year as a right, and at Pipe last year she ticked the first off the list for 2023. It’s a rarity for the Hawaiian to not make an appearance in the final four – in fact she enjoyed an absurd run up until last year of multiple years doing it at every event – and though she didn’t have much success here last year, it’s hard to see her failing to surpass the Round of 16 finish which she endured that time around. Moore will be in the mix for favouritism for every event at which she competes this year, and the five-time world champ is no doubt the woman to beat at the Hurley Pro.
Moore is the undisputed best surfer in the world, but if anyone is going to consistently challenge her for that title, it may well be Tyler Wright. After a number of tumultuous years following her back-to-back world titles in 2016 and 2017, Wright appeared to be returning to her best last year before a series of unfortunate events derailed her season. If fit and firing, she will be a massive threat for the world title this year, as she showed at Pipeline in finishing runner-up last week. Like Moore, she didn’t have her best result at Sunset last year, being knocked out in the Round of 16, but it will be a surprise if she doesn’t do a whole lot better than that this time around.
The Next Tier
At the age of 35, Steph Gilmore is no longer at the peak of her powers, and over recent years she has struggled to go deep into tournaments with the regularity she once did. The most successful female surfer in history, however, is still capable of winding back the clock. She showed that on the biggest stage last year with her extraordinary performance at the WSL Finals en route to her eighth world title, and that will be etched in the minds of her and her competitors. She was the first woman eliminated in 2023 at Pipeline – not exactly a start befitting the reigning world champion – but if she clicks into gear, that could all change very quickly.
Tatiana Weston-Webb might be eight titles short of Gilmore, but she’s more than capable of getting there one day, and this year could be the year. Her start at Pipe was solid without being spectacular, a quarterfinal exit seeing her enter the Hurley Pro in fifth place in the world rankings. She was another big name who was knocked out in the Round of 16 here last year – as you might have guessed, there were a few surprise results at that contest – but that was symptomatic of a start to the 2022 season which saw her knocked out early in four of the first five events. The other, she won. When she flicks the switch she’s tough to stop, meaning she’s always a chance.
One of those who caused a surprise at the Hurley Pro last year was Bettylou Sakura Johnson, and though she’s not exactly viewed as a world title contender just yet, there’s plenty of reasons to like her chances at this contest. Aged just 17, there’s no doubting the Hawaiian’s talent, and in the handful of CT events in which she’s competed, already she’s clocked up a third place at this event, and another third at Pipeline last week. She’s shown her local knowledge to be a big advantage in Hawaii in her short career to date, and having demonstrated good form to start the year and a strong result here last year, she won’t be a name anyone wants to face at this contest.
Lakey Peterson is at the other end of her career to Johnson, having begun her 11th season on the Championship Tour at Pipeline last week. And the 28-year-old kicked it off in style, racking up a third place finish. She was a victim of Johnson’s run here last year, losing 12.1-10.23 in the Round of 16, but she’s a relatively consistent surfer and is capable of better than that this year. Peterson has long struggled to get past the absolute best of the best, but she’s persistently in the final eight, so it’s hard to ever completely write her off, and having shown good form to start the year last week, it’s even harder at this event.
The Roughie
Caroline Marks is something of a forgotten woman on the Championship Tour, but at some point she’s going to remind everybody of her talent. Marks finished second back in 2019 and since then has endured struggles both in terms of getting in the water, and consistently performing when she does get out there, but it’s easy to forget that she’s only just turned 20 years of age. Marks has a long and quite possibly illustrious career ahead of her, and the failure to back up her 2019 season to date does little to change that. Her penchant for early exits is something she’ll be looking to stamp out as she gains more experience, and a Round of 16 finish at Pipe was certainly not the ideal start to the year. But write Marks off at your own risk; she is a prodigiously talented young surfer who, if she pulls it all together, will be competing for world titles. Perhaps this event could start such a run.
Our Tip
Despite all of the talent in this contest, it’s hard to go past Wright and Moore as the two to beat. If conditions get heavy, as they are predicted to, that’s even more the case; they handle waves of consequence as well as anyone, and if that’s what we get at Sunset, where others will wilt they will flourish. Separating the two isn’t easy, but Wright in particular seems to only get better the more heaving the conditions. In a repeat of the final at Pipeline, I’m backing her to get the chocolates this time around.
