It was a battle on the beach between Southern California surfers: Would Huntington Beach’s hometown surfer Kanoa Igarashi clinch his third US Open of Surfing title? Or would San Diego’s Jake Marshall overtake the local surfer to win his first-ever championship at the Challenger Series event?
The Lexus US Open of Surfing ended with a nail-bitter, Igarshi and Marshall taking last-second waves to try to best their opponents, crowds mobbing them on the beach as judges contemplated the scores.
A last-ditch effort by Igarashi didn’t get the score he needed, leaving Marshall, of Encinitas, to claim his first-ever US Open of Surfing win, the San Diego surfer slapping the water in victory when he heard the news on the loudspeaker.
“I can’t even put it into words, honestly,” Marshall said. “It’s a dream come true.”
In the women’s contest, Australian Sierra Kerr, who splits time in Encinitas, took the big win over fellow countrywoman Isla Huppatz, who helped lift Kerr up the sand to celebrate her victory.
It was especially emotional for Kerr following a recent health battle with Lyme disease that has had her in and out of the hospital.
“No one saw the tears, pain, just not being able to get out of bed all night,” she said following her win. “Now I’m getting chaired up at the most prestigious events in the world. I can’t believe it.”
The wave energy dropped on the last day of the contest, in the 3- to 5-foot range, allowing for more above-the-lip maneuvers that showcased the surfers’ aerial skills for the final day, a stark contrast to the upward 10-foot waves that required watercraft assist for the surfers midweek.
The previous day, on Saturday, several local surfers were eliminated from the event, leaving only a handful of Southern Californians — Marshall, Griffin Colapinto, Hayden Rodgers and Igarashi — in the hunt for the title.
The surf action kicked off Sunday with the men’s quarterfinals, Marshall up against Brazil’s Gabriel Klaussner for the first heat of the day. Marshall found a 7.40 score, with a backup 6.67, to overtake his opponent for a spot in the semifinals.
Marshall is a World Tour surfer who came in runner-up against Colapinto in 2021, the San Clemente surfer taking the win.
San Clemente surfer Hayden Rodgers won his quarterfinal heat against Brazilian Deivid Silva.
Colapinto went up against Brazil’s Mateus Herdy, who lost in last year’s finals, waiting patiently for just the right wave while Herdy got busy in the opening minutes, posting a 5.83, then an 8.67 to take an early lead. Colapinto waited, not earning his first wave until 10 minutes into the heat — but worth the patience with a score of 7.83.
Colapinto then got a 7.0 to take the top spot by going with big air on his wave, trying to connect to the inside using the “Huntington hop” bouncing his board up and down, doing a front flip into the shallows just for fun. A last-minute 8.67 wave solidified his spot in the semifinals, fans flocking to him on the sand for autographs and selfies.
Colapinto had not entered the contest since his win in 2021, but five years later and a veteran on the World Tour, he showed he still remembered the surf break he spent his childhood surfing on the amateur circuit.
“This event is so iconic, going so far back into history,” said Colapinto. “A win here would be insane… last time I did it, I won. The waves have been so much fun, loving it.”
Igarashi, who won the event back-to-back in 2017 and 2018, won his heat against Peru’s Lucca Mesinas to advance.
“These guys know this wave as well as I do, if not more,” Igarashi said of the all-Southern California semifinals. “We all surfed this wave so much.”
For Igarashi and Colapinto, who he matched up against in the semifinals, they want to feel the thrill of the win once again.
“Being from Southern California, the US Open is such a prestigious event, the pride,” Igarashi said.
When the women’s heat got underway, Kerr, 19, went up against World Tour veteran Johanne Defay, of France, who was surfing her first contest back after having a baby. Defay won the event in 2015.
Kerr’s father Josh, who was on the World Tour for many years when she was a baby, gave her advice to connect the waves to the inside to maximize her score.
Kerr took an early lead and held it throughout the heat, earning a spot in the finals.
In the next women’s heat, Australian surfers Sophie McCulloch and Huppatz, matched up, with Huppatz earning a buzzer-beater wave to go into the final’s heat.
For Huppatz, the reigning World Surf League junior world champ, it was her first time competing at the US Open.
“She put a few scores on me early, the pressure was building the whole heat, but there wasn’t really a set,” she said of McCulloch. “Obviously, the nerves were there and there was a lot of pressure, but so glad that wave came.”
It would be a rematch for Kerr and Huppatz, who took the win during a battle for the junior world championships title.
“Every competition’s different, so I don’t think past success really means anything,” Huppatz said. “Sierra is such an amazing competitor, and I’m really excited to battle against her again.”
But first, the men matched up to earn their final spot.
Rodgers, 20, and Marshall, 27, went up against one another in the first semifinal match,
Rodgers paddled into the first wave, going to the air but wiping out in the whitewash. But it wasn’t long before they both put up scores, Marshall earning a 7.0 and Rodgers a 5.50.
Marshall talked about Rodgers’ “X factor” with his air game.
“He can kind of turn an average wave and do a big score really easily. So I was like, I’m just going to surf whatever wave I get,” Marshall said. “I’m super stoked for him. He’s had such a good event, and it’s really cool to see all these California guys doing really well.”
In the Orange County semifinal matchup between Igarashi and Colapinto, Igarashi threw the first blow, taking a right and going to the air to the cheers of the crowd, weaving his way to the inside for a big wrap around and a small turn for a high 7.33, backed by a 4.77 to take the lead.
Colapinto landed a 5.0 and then a 6.50, but not enough to take down Igarashi, the San Clemente surfer taking a third-place finish at the event.
“I’m really happy to get that one on him. Obviously, when you get this far, you want to get to the finals and be on the podium,” Igarashi said of his longtime rival whom he grew up competing against. “We both really wanted it and I’m really happy with that one.”
Igarashi, before heading to the finals, talked about how special it is to compete in front of his hometown.
“This wave is giving me so much,” he said. “I feel a lot of pride surfing this week, and having a shot at another US Open title, it’s something super special.”
At the start of the week, he knew it would be no easy task with all of the talent who showed up for the competition.
“It’s a tough event. It’s a long event. You have so many competitors … there are some really unique surfers that I came up against,” he said. “It really pushed me to the end.”
The women’s 40-minute final heat had a slow start, with no waves ridden for nearly 20 minutes, prompting a restart. Kerr landed a 4.50 to take the lead, backed by a 6.50, her opponent with no waves as the heat hit the halfway mark.
Huppatz’ patience paid off with huge turns on her first wave as the 12-minute mark hit, earning a 7.33. Another 4.57 wave put her in the top spot.
With the 5-minute mark hitting, Kerr connected a wave to the inside, whipping on the wave and finishing on the inside – 6.0 to bump back into the lead and the win.
Kerr was met on the shore by her dad, who embraced her and kissed her on the cheek, wrapping the Australian flag around her shoulders, followed by hugs from her mom.
Her dad and Huppatz lifted Kerr up the sand to the winner’s stage, friends and family circling around them both for an Australian cheer.
Kerr said throughout her health journey, she kept telling herself — keep getting to tomorrow.
“And there’s always a chance that tomorrow will be better,” she said.
She thanked everyone who got her to this point, especially her mom and dad.
“You don’t know what the future will hold, but we’re here right now.”
In the men’s final heat, Marshall got the action quick when the start buzzer sounded, earning a 5.33, the two surfers exchanging waves for a seesaw battle to build scores through the 40-minute heat.
Igarashi took the lead through much of the event, until Marshall whipped into a wave for an 8-point ride, taking top spot — less than a point between the surfers.
Igarashi wouldn’t go down easily, punting to the air on the outside but unable to connect to the inside, needing a 7.38. His score wasn’t enough — leaving Marshall with the big win.
Marshall has had a tough competitive year, needing the Challenger Series points as a backup in case he’s not able to get results on the elite-level World Tour to stay in the mix.
“Keep grinding, keep trying, I came up short so many times, and just keep putting my head down, keep working,” he said, noting he was ready for a celebratory beer. “Earlier this year, it was one of the hardest competitive years of my life, and to win this event means so much to me, just to win. And all my friends and family are down here, it’s an amazing moment.”