2009 ASP World Tour

Below is the current top 45 seed list and the ASP replacements for the 2009 ASP World Tour.

2009 ASP World Tour Top 45 Seed List

1 Kelly Slater (USA)

2 Bede Durbidge (AUS)
3 Taj Burrow (AUS)
4 Joel Parkinson (AUS)
5 C.J. Hobgood (USA)
6 Adrian Buchan (AUS)
7 Adriano de Souza (BRA)
8 Mick Fanning (AUS)
9 Bobby Martinez (USA)
10 Jeremy Flores (FRA)
11 Luke Stedman (AUS)
12 Fredrick Patacchia (HAW)
13 Chris Ward (USA)
14 Kai Otton (AUS)
15 Tim Reyes (USA)
16 Tom Whitaker (AUS)
17 Kieren Perrow (AUS)
18 Dayyan Neve (AUS)
19 Mikael Picon (FRA)
20 Dane Reynolds (USA)
21 Taylor Knox (USA)
22 Damien Hobgood (USA)
23 Heitor Alves (BRA)
24 Jordy Smith (ZAF)
25 Ben Dunn (AUS)
26 Roy Powers (HAW)
27 Dean Morrison (AUS)
28 Mick Campbell (AUS)
29 Nathaniel Curran (USA)
30 Chris Davidson (AUS)
31 Michel Bourez (PYF)
32 Gabe Kling (USA)
33 Jihad Khodr (BRA)
34 David Weare (ZAF)
35 Josh Kerr (AUS)
36 Nic Muscroft (HAW)
37 Kekoa Bacalso (HAW)
38 Greg Emslie (ZAF)
39 Tim Boal (FRA)
40 Dustin Barca (HAW)
41 Tiago Pires (POR)
42 Phillip MacDonald (AUS)
43 Drew Courtney (AUS)
44 Marlon Lipke (GER)
45 Aritz Aranburu (EUK)

Lay Day on Day 1 of the Billabong Pro Tahiti Waiting Period

TEAHUPOO, Tahiti (Thursday, May 8, 2008) Today is the first of an 11-day waiting period for the Billabong Pro Tahiti but the ASP Top 45 and event wildcards will not paddle out for their Round 1 heats today. Contest Director Luke Egan eyed conditions all morning before opting to call things off for the day.

"We had a good look at it and we are opting not to run today, Egan said. I watched it for an hour last night and if it looked like that this morning then I was definitely going to run. Time is on our side with the waiting period so we are going to utilize it fully."

Conditions are forecasted to stay small over the next few days which is good news for at least one surfer defending champion Damien Hobgood (USA). Hobgood suffered an injury freesurfing at Teahupoo a few weeks ago and is still nursing a sore shoulder. The more time he has to heal increases the likelihood he will be able to compete.

Remarkably, its been years since each and every member of the Top 45 have been slated to surf an event injury, personal lives and travel issues often intervene. At this juncture, all elite tour surfers are seeded into the draw. Among them, after spending much of the past two years on the injury list himself, is Timmy Reyes (USA).

"Im definitely back at 100%, Reyes said. I just found my good surfing rhythm within Australia. I felt like I was surfing pretty good over there, I just had a couple of tough breaks but that is what happens when you surf against the worlds top surfers. Im just stoked to be back to 100%, if not better, and I cant wait for the contest to start. Im stoked to be here."

Reyes will meet 2007 ASP Rookie of the Year Jeremy Flores (FRA) and South Africas Travis Logie in Heat 4 of Round 1.

The surfers and event staff enjoyed a traditional Tahitian welcome complete with belly dancing and fire twirling last night. Todays activities will likely include kayaking, fishing, hiking and napping.

Another call on competition status will be made tomorrow, Friday, May 9, at 7am.

The Billabong Pro Tahiti will be webcast LIVE on www.aspworldtour.com and www.billabongpro.com.

Billabong Pro Tahiti Round 1 Match-Ups:
Heat 1: Dean Morrison (AUS), Luke Munro (AUS), Daniel Ross (AUS)
Heat 2: Kai Otton (AUS), Leonardo Neves (BRA), Ricky Basnett (ZAF)
Heat 3: Bobby Martinez (USA), Roy Powers (HAW), Royden Bryson (ZAF)
Heat 4: Jeremy Flores (FRA), Tim Reyes (USA), Travis Logie (ZAF)
Heat 5: Andy Irons (HAW), Ben Dunn (AUS), Tiago Pires (PRT)
Heat 6: Joel Parkinson (AUS), Damien Hobgood (USA), Aritz Aranburu (EUK)
Heat 7: Bede Durbidge (AUS), Dayyan Neve (AUS), Chris Ward (USA)
Heat 8: Kelly Slater (USA), C.J. Hobgood (USA), Manoa Drollet (PYF)
Heat 9: Mick Fanning (AUS), Pancho Sullivan (HAW), Jamie OBrien (HAW)
Heat 10: Taj Burrow (AUS), Tom Whitaker (AUS), Bruno Santos (BRA)
Heat 11: Adrian Buchan (AUS), Jordy Smith (ZAF), Mikael Picon (FRA)
Heat 12: Adriano de Souza (BRA), Jay Thompson (AUS), Heitor Alves (BRA)
Heat 13: Taylor Knox (USA), Kieren Perrow (AUS), Jihad Khodr (BRA)
Heat 14: Luke Stedman (AUS), Rodrigo Dornelles (BRA), Michael Campbell (AUS)
Heat 15: Dane Reynolds (USA), Fredrick Patacchia (HAW), Ben Bourgeois (USA)
Heat 16: Neco Padaratz (BRA), Bruce Irons (HAW), Daniel Wills (AUS)

What's On Tour

Damien Hobgood Hurt 

Damien Hobgood was heading into the South Pacific leg of the Dream Tour the defending champ of both the Billabong Pro Tahiti and the Globe Pro Fiji. Now he's not sure whether he'll be able to attend either event. Damo went over the falls freesurfing Teahupoo last week and fractured his shoulder. Several sources are saying he's out of Tahiti for sure, but according to ASP Tour Manager Renato Hickel, Damien is still in the draw and trying to make it - only time will tell. Get more details... 

Boost it or Lose it! 

Owen Wright was the wildcard who could at the Boost Mobile Surf Sho last weekend. Wright aired his way to victory over the world's best boosters... last year's winner Taj Burrow among them. The Boost Mobile Surf Sho is one of three specialty events on the '08 ASP roster. Check out the hightlights... 

Al Hunt's Situation Room – Monday, April 21, 2008 

In this week's WQS events local surfers grabbed both first places with South Africa's David Weare taking out the 6 Star Prime Quiksilver Pro in Durban and Frenchman Romain Laulhe the Vendee Surf Pro in France. The win for Weare makes it his 4th career WQS victory but this is for sure the highlight of his career winning a 6 Star Prime and 3000 points pushing him from 164th to 12th on the WQS ratings. For Romain it is his 1st WQS win so for sure he is also extremely happy plus has 1500 points to add to his ratings tally putting him up from 92nd to 44th. Get on the Hunt... 

O'Neill Highland Open by Swatch The 6 Star PRIME 

O'Neill Highland Open by Swatch will take to the chilly waters of Thurso, Scotland from April 23-30. The action starts tomorrow, but last year's winner, Nathan Hedge, was in the water early this morning acclimatizing to the water chill of the world's northernmost professional surfing contest. For Hedge and many of the 144 competitors arriving in Thurso from all around the world, cold water surfing at 59 degrees north is a radical departure from the norm. Watch them heat things up on the webcast... I am sure that spectators can stay warm if they buy some warm sports clothing online.

Earth Day Every Day 

April 22nd might be Earth Day but every day is a good day to get Earthy. Whether you jump on board with the folks at www.surfrider.org, www.seashepherd.org or offset your footprint in your own way, this is just a little reminder to show Mother nature some love.