Tag: surfjudging

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coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

GRINDING GEARS

Still talking about the First Stop of the 2026/2027 World Surf League Challenger Series in Ballito, South Africa, won by Championship Tour surfer Cole Houshmand. Also some talk about judges, comparing some Stab contests, and suggesting how the WSL could improve.

The Cry is Free. And the Cry was Loud. From all over the globe, really. Australia, Hawaii, USA, and surprisingly, Brazil. Everyone had some kind of complaint about the judging/scoring during the Ballito Pro. Here are a few of my favorite comments: “This is surfing, not ice skating, scores are not determined by how many […]

Categories
coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

HOT WATER

Drama in the Competitive Surf World yet again. Controversy surrounding the WSL, the judges and their scores at the last Challenger Series event of the season in Newcastle.

Ironic. I guess that is just the way life works sometimes. I’ve sat here posting for years whinging about the WSL, and now here I go about defending them. Satiric. In my defense it is not so much the WSL I’m backing, but the judges. Those are my people. And from the outside, it’s understandably […]