Australia has a new surfing star after Molly Picklum won her maiden World Surf League title with victory at the Hurley Pro Sunset Beach in Hawaii.
Picklum knocked out compatriot Tyler Wright in the semi-finals before beating American Caroline Marks in the final to claim a first big win on just her second year on the Championship Tour.
Victory sees the 20-year-old from the NSW Central Coast take a share of the leader’s yellow jersey with five-time champion Carissa Moore, who took out the opening event of the season at Pipeline but bowed out at the quarter-final stage at Sunset.
“This event is so challenging,” Picklum said. “I’m just proud of myself, just chipping away and keep trying even though there’s so many setbacks and so many emotions and mind games in it all.
“It takes a lot of work but I’m super happy and moments like these make it all worth it.”
Competing in her first ever CT final, Picklum won a thriller against Marks that went down to the wire. The Australian scored 10.90 to edge Marks, who posted a two-wave total of 9.90.
It looked like an error by Picklum with 90 seconds left on the clock might hand the 21-year-old Floridian the title, when she lost priority after making a start to paddle on to a wave. But Marks was unable to make the most of the late opportunity to find the winning score to join Moore as No 1 in the rankings.
Australia’s Jack Robinson maintained that status in the men’s rankings despite making a semi-final exit.
Picklum said it was a difficult final to navigate. “I’m pretty baffled – it was pretty slow and then it was just a big flurry of waves at the end,” Picklum said.
Picklum missed the mid-season cut last year, when the women’s field was reduced to 12, and to battle her way back through the challenger series. She showed her promise last December when she became the first non-Hawaiian women’s winner of the invitational Vans Pipe Masters in Oahu.
Moore, who won the Billabong Pro at nearby Pipeline earlier this month, was a quarter-final elimination but held onto the yellow jersey along with Picklum.
The youngster said she wanted to keep a hold of the leaders’ jersey right through to the WSL finals at Trestles later in the year.
“It is just a jersey colour but I’m stoked to be on the top because it’s honestly where I want to be and where I believe I can be,” she said. “The end goal is Trestles so hopefully I’m wearing it all of this year.”
