Gold Coast Open: 15-year-old local wildcard Isla Huppatz and Lennix Smith claim maiden QS wins
It was certainly an event for generation-next at the Gold Coast Open at Burleigh Heads, with a local teenage wildcard stunning the field to pull off a fairytale victory.
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Two young guns, led by a local wildcard, have recorded their maiden Qualifying Series (QS) victories as the next generation of surfers dominated at the Gold Coast Open at Burleigh Heads.
In what was the result of the comp, 15-year-old local surfer Isla Huppatz defeated North Narrabeen’s Tru Starling in the final of the women’s event.
Even more incredibly, Huppatz, who received a local wildcard to compete in the event, produced the highest two-wave total of 17.67 in the final, using her home break advantage in the small one- to two-foot surf to outgun Starling, who finished with 13.83.
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“I’m so happy to win my first QS today and grateful for the support of Burleigh Boardriders, especially for the wildcard into this event,” Huppatz told WSL after the final.
“The waves were pretty tricky, but I just went out there to have fun and with no expectations of myself. My parents joked if I won, I‘d have to shout them dinner, so I think I’ll do that tonight.”
While Huppatz was the toast of Burleigh Heads after her stunning victory, another young gun in the form of Lennix Smith took out the men’s event.
The 18-year-old from Barrack Point of the NSW south coast edged out Angourie’s Dakoda Walters in the tight final, 14.47 to 14.10.
“I’m over the moon to win at Burleigh today,” said Smith. “The waves were super challenging, but I was fortunate enough to find my rhythm. I’ve been trying to win an event for ages, so to do so in front of my girlfriend and family feels amazing.”
The Gold Coast Open was the second event on the Australian leg of the QS, with the next stop the Great Lakes Pro at Boomerang Beach on the NSW mid-north coast, which starts on February 21.
Ahead of stop three on the tour, we’ve taken a look at the top performers from the Gold Coast.
The top performers at the Gold Coast Open
Isla Huppatz (Bilinga)
Winner
One of three surfing sisters who moved from Jan Juc in Victoria to the Gold Coast in 2021, the 15-year-old recorded undoubtedly the biggest victory of her career at Burleigh, mastering the tricky conditions to score the highest two-wave total of the event in the final.
A winner of the under 16 division of the Occy’s Grom Comp last year, it doesn’t appear as though this will be last time we’ll hear Isla’s name – or that of her sisters, for that matter.
Lennix Smith (Barrack Point)
Winner
The breakthrough QS win caps off a busy start to the year for Smith, who surfed for Jones Beach in the Australian Boardriders Battle in Newcastle a couple of weeks ago, before attempting to win his third-straight Tweed Coast Pro Junior event last weekend.
While he didn’t quite manage the hat-trick, the 18-year-old is considered to be one of the most exciting up and coming surfers in Australia and is certainly one to keep an eye on.
Tru Starling (North Narrabeen)
Runner-up
The second-place finish was Starling’s best result on the QS, and sets her up nicely for the rest of the Australian leg.
The 22-year-old was in top form all weekend at Burleigh, and will hope the performance can act as a springboard as she looks towards qualification for the Challenger Series.
Dakoda Walters (Angourie)
Runner-up
The Walters name has been popping up regularly in surfing circles far this year, with both Dakoda and younger brother Harley putting in some excellent performances in recent times.
After winning a dramatic final-wave shootout to claim the Australian Boardriders Battle for Byron Bay Boardriders in Newcastle, Dakoda backed it up with a solid ninth-place finish at the season-opening Tweed Coast pro at Cabarita last week.
One of the standout surfers of the Gold Coast Pro, Walters was unlucky not to take out the title, going down by just 0.37 points in the final.
Ellie Lambkin (Newcastle)
Third place – eliminated in the semi finals
A best-ever result on the QS for the Newcastle surfer, who knocked off former Championship Tour competitor Paige Hareb in the quarter finals.
The performance will give the 19-year-old plenty of confidence as the tour moves to more familiar surrounds, with the Lake Mac City Pro Junior (Redhead Beach) and Port Stephens Pro QS (Birubi Beach) coming up this weekend, before Newcastle’s famous Surfest takes place on her home break of Merewether in late March.
Sheldon Simkus (Tweed Heads)
Third place – eliminated in the semi finals
More or less a local event for the Tweed Heads surfer, the Gold Coast comps are a happy hunting round for Simkus.
The regular-footer registered his best result at Burleigh since his third-place finish at the Tweed Coast Pro back in 2021, while he also finished second at the Gold Coast Pro at Snapper last year in the Challenger Series.
After helping Snapper Boardriders to second place in the ABB and picking up a strong result over the weekend, Simkus will be hoping to qualify for the Challenger Series and give it another shake this year.
Freya Prumm (Merimbula)
Third place – eliminated in the semi finals
Another solid performance from one of the south coast’s most consistent performers, who recorded a second, two sevenths and two ninth-place finishes on last year’s QS.
A competitor on the Challenger Series in both 2021 and 2022, Prumm, who works as a pharmacist, will be hoping to make it three years in a row in 2023.
Jamie Thomson (North Narrabeen)
Third place – eliminated in the semi finals
Reaching the semi-finals caps off a strong recent run for Thomson on the QS, after picking up three third-place finishes last year.
The North Narrabeen surfer was in good form at Burleigh, winning every heat bar one on his way to the semi-finals before ultimately falling to Walters.
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