As everyone knows by now, American surfer Kelly Slater slaughtered the competition in the recently held 2008 Billabong Pro in Jeffreys Bay.
By defeating reigning world champion Mick Fanning from Australia, 36-year old Slater claimed his fourth World Tour victory out of the five 2008 contests held so far this year. Since there are only six contests remaining, this enables him to stake an early claim to an unprecedented ninth ASP World title.
Only one of the South African surfers managed to finish in the top 10. Durbanite Jordy Smith was eliminated when he was defeated in the fourth round by Australian Taj Burrow, making him finish ninth overall. In fact, apart from eliminating Smith, Burrow’s spectacular performance throughout the event also prevented two of the other South Africans from posing a serious challenge. Burrow beat wildcard Rudy Palmboom Jr. from the Bluff in Round 1 and eliminated Royden Bryson from East London in Round 3.
Durbanite Travis Logie was eliminated by Slater in the third round, while Ricky Basnett was beaten in the second round by Jeremy Flores.
Following the Billabong Pro in Jeffreys, the South Africans are now ranked as follows on the 2008 ASP World Tour rankings:
16 Jordy Smith 2245
34 Royden Bryson 1680
39 Travis Logie 1495
44 Ricky Basnett 1125
