Seaford surfer Dion Atkinson heads to Portugal in bid to qualify for World Tour

DION Atkinson left Adelaide for Portugal last week knowing he has never been better prepared to become the first SA-based surfer to make the World Tour.

DION Atkinson cut it fine last Wednesday, packing his suitcase on the fly before making a dash to Adelaide Airport.

But the 27-year-old took off for Portugal knowing he has never been better prepared as his quest to become the first South Australian-based surfer to make the men's World Tour reaches a critical point.

"I can honestly say I'm more excited than nervous or apprehensive about the next six weeks because I now I've had the prefect preparation,'' the Seaford-based boardrider says.

"There is pressure. I'm going there to get a good result but I'm going there confident."

Now in his seventh attempt at making the tour, Atkinson's equation is simple as he surfs Portugal's Cascais Billabong Pro this week before finishing the season with a pair of events in Hawaii.

Maintain or improve his current 2013 world ranking of 32 and his dream of surfing alongside the likes of Kelly Slater and Mick Fanning on next year's World Tour becomes reality.

But if his ranking dips at all over the final three events, other variables come into play and he may miss out again.

Now a veteran of the qualifying series, known as the "grind tour" among surfers because of the less lucrative pay packets, Atkinson has shown a maturity this year which suggests he is ready for the big time.

The journeyman secured strong results at early season events in Maragret River, Brazil and Newcastle, putting him a good position in the qualifying series, which rewards consistency.

"They call it the grind tour because it's not glamorous.

"You just have to grind out the results which I've been able to do so far."

With those performances in the bank, he has spent much of the second half of the year preparing for Portugal and Hawaii, training with highly-regarded coach Andy King at Surfing Australia's Gold Coast High Performance Centre.

"We've done a fair bit of work in the water but we've also worked on my mental approach to it,'' Atkinson says.

"I've got close before but in previous year's I've let it take over me, the pressure of it.

"This year I've done a lot of work on breaking it all down and being in the moment."

To be guaranteed a World Tour spot, Atkinson needs about 4000 points from the final three events - all rated as Prime Series competitions.

One top-three finish would give him the required points in one-hit, but two ninth-place finishes would also see him realise a dream hatched years ago on Adelaide's southern beaches.

"I've been in this position before but I feel like I'm smarter now as a competitor,'' Atkinson says.

"I just need one more big result or a couple of good ones.

"I'm going there for myself. It's what I've always wanted to do, to get on that World Tour."

The only previous South Australian to make the Tour was Jarrad Howse (2006) but he based himself on the east coast.