HALEIWA — Patience and faith in his home break of Haleiwa delivered local boy Joel Centeio the biggest victory of his career Monday, winning the Reef Hawaiian Pro in 6 to 8-foot surf with a late barrel ride and only
HALEIWA — Patience and faith in his home break of Haleiwa delivered local boy Joel Centeio the biggest victory of his career Monday, winning the Reef Hawaiian Pro in 6 to 8-foot surf with a late barrel ride and only the mandatory two waves to his credit.
“My family, friends and everybody is here and it’s a dream come true to win right here at my homebreak,” he said.
Centeio, 26, came from the very first round, winning all seven heats he contested. He now takes an early lead on the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing presented by Rockstar Energy Drink series ratings. His win earned him $20,000. If he can stay the course and win the Vans Triple Crown series title, it will pay another $50,000 as well as a $10,000 custom Nixon watch.
“All day I was just trying to be patient. There were tough competitors all day and I knew if I was patient and my positioning was correct I would get the good sets. If I got all the good sets then I would make it out of all my heats.”
Runner-up in the final was Florida’s CJ Hobgood, third was Australian Jay “Bottle” Thompson, 27, and fourth was Tahiti’s Alain Riou. Hobgood and Thompson were always within striking distance, requiring less than a 7.0 point ride to turn the tables, but Haleiwa chose to favor her own.
While the win catapulted Centeio from 131st on the ASP World Qualifying Series ratings to 51st, he still has no chance of qualifying for the 2010 ASP Dream Tour.
Kaua‘i’s Roy Powers made it through his first heat and into the quarterfinals, but was outpointed by Centeio and Damien Hobgood and did not move into the semifinals.
The upset of the day was world title contender Joel Parkinson’s loss in the quarter finals. Parkinson succumbed to a lack of waves on offer in his quarter final heat.
