SLATER SNEAKS AWAY WITH SURFING CROWN.Byline: Dave Allen Daily News Staff Writer All day long Kelly Slater's spectacular aerial maneuvers impressed the crowd and scored big with the judges. But the move Slater made to clinch the U.S. Open The term U.S. Open is applied to "open" United States national championships in a particular sport, in which anybody, amateur or professional, American or non-American may compete. These include:
Slater's quick and quiet paddle behind Shane Beschen Surfer. In 1996, at Kirra, Shane Beschen became the first and only professional surfer to score three perfect 10 point rides for a total 30 out of 30 ASP three-wave scoring system. less than two minutes into the championship round clearly established wave position for all of the estimated 75,000 people at Huntington Beach Huntington Beach, city (1990 pop. 181,519), Orange co., S Calif., on the Pacific coast, across from Santa Catalina Island, in an oil-producing area; inc. 1909. It manufactures aerospace vehicles, aircraft parts, optical instruments, and heat transfer equipment. . Everyone, that is, except Beschen. The San Clemente San Clemente (săn klĭmĕn`tē), city (1990 pop. 41,100), Orange co., S Calif., on the Pacific coast; inc. 1928. Camp Pendleton, a large U.S. marine base, adjoins the city, which is chiefly residential. resident, busy trying to catch the wave for himself, never saw Slater and took the ride from him before he realized that the world's top surfer was right behind him. Slater's strategy resulted in an interference call against Beschen, all but assuring Slater of his first ever U.S. Open title. ``It wasn't a pleasant way to win the final. I have no regrets about it, but it's not a happy victory for me,'' said Slater, a Floridian who had lost to Beschen in the 1994 finals and finished second again in 1995. ``It was a sneaky move by me and a tactical error by Shane. That's all that happened.'' Beschen didn't discover the penalty until halfway through the final. When he did, he caught the next wave in, violently slapped his board against the water and gestured obscenely toward the judges' booth. ``I'm upset. No, I never saw (Slater) or heard him behind me. He was quiet as a mouse,'' said Beschen, currently ranked No. 2 in the world behind Slater. ``I really don't hold anything against him for trying that, it just shows me what he's capable of doing.'' Beschen lost one scoring ride as a result of the penalty and finished with a two-ride total of 16.75, including a strong 9.0. Slater, with three scoring rides, had 21 points. Head judge Renato Hickel said the interference decision was unanimous among the four officials. ``We judge the situation and it was a clear call. (Slater) had inside position,'' Hickel said. Beschen wasn't the only past champion Slater had to beat during his Sunday drive for the Open title. In the morning quarterfinals, Slater outsurfed defending champion defending champion n (SPORT) → defensor/a m/f del tÃtulo defending champion n (Sport) → champion(ne) en titre Rob Machado Robert Edward Machado (better known simply as Rob Machado) (b. October 16, 1973 Sydney, Australia) is an American professional surfer from Cardiff-by-the-Sea, a community in Encinitas (San Diego County), California. easily. Machado, who finished second to Slater on the world tour last year, couldn't find the wave he was looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. . When he finally did get a ride, early errors cost Machado a high score. ``I wasn't feeling it. It wasn't happening today,'' a seemingly disinterested Machado said. Slater then beat Taylor Knox of Carlsbad in the semifinals to earn a berth in the finals for the third consecutive year. The performance, Slater's best of the day, included several impressive aerial maneuvers. ``I really had to get motivated to beat (Knox),'' Slater said. ``It was tough all the way through and I'm completely happy to finally win this event.'' Beschen reached the championship round by outscoring Jeff Booth of Laguna Beach Laguna Beach (ləg  `nə), city (1990 pop. 23,170), Orange co., S Calif., on the Pacific coast; founded 1887, inc. 1927. in the quarterfinals and dominating Australian Michael
Barry
The tournament win was Slater's third straight on the tour - another first in his career. The victory earned him $14,000. Beschen won $7,000. Just in time: Defending champion Joel Tudor Joel Tudor is a world famous longboard surfer from San Diego, California. He started out in skateboarding and, while in his early teens, gained both recognition and sponsorship for this. caught a wave with 10 seconds remaining in the final heat to pull out a narrow victory over fellow Southern Californian Geoff Moysa in the longboarding championships. Tudor scored a 6.35 on the final ride to win the competition by less than a point and earn $1,500. ``That last one was a panic wave. No way I planned that,'' said Tudor, 19. ``I was being an unwise boy and I tried to wait. Then I got lucky right at the end with some of the leftovers.'' The surf conditions, considered by most competitors to be the best since the tournament began in 1994, stayed strong on Sunday. The waves were 3- to 5-feet high with offshore wind early in the day. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: (color) Kelly Slater Kelly Slater (b. Robert Kelly Slater February 11 1972, Cocoa Beach, Florida) is the most successful professional surfer in the history of the sport. Slater is an eight time world champion and has been sponsored by Quiksilver since 1990. cuts back in his semifinal matc h at the U.S. Open. He won the title over Shane Beschen. Hans Gutknecht/Daily News |
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