Jackson Baker, Morgan Cibilic make strong starts at US Open

The duo started in the round of 64 at the Challenger Series event, which is the fourth of six on the second-tier tour. The regular-footers are inside the Challenger Series top 10 and in position for a return to the Championship Tour in 2024, but they face strong opposition for the qualifying spots.

Baker, who is seventh on the standings, won his 30-minute heat against countrymen Joel Vaughan and Kalani Ball, and Hawaii's Brodi Sale, thanks to scores of 5.67 and 5.77 in the opening six minutes.

A series of quick turns, then a wrapping carve and finish in the one-to-four foot waves gave him the lead on 11.4, which would have been enough to win.

However, he improved his two-wave total with a 7.0 late in the contest for a 12.77. Central Coast's Vaughan, this year's Surfest champion, progressed with a last-minute wave to finish second on 11.2. Sale (10.64) and Ball (10.57) bowed out.

Baker next faces Hawaiian Shion Crawford, Australian Reef Heazlewood and newly CT qualified American Cole Houshmand.

"It kind of fired me up a little bit, I felt like I was surfing pretty well and they were kind of capping me with those scores," Baker said of his early fives.

"That's a good thing, it fires me up, and once I got the chance on the seven at the end, I laid it all down, and I went, 'there we go, there's a real turn'.

"I guess there's things that happen in heats for a reason, and, yeah, just chipping my way through the contest.

"These round one heats are probably gnarlier. As the contest goes on, you lose so many guys that the heats can almost get easier. That's a gnarly first heat.

"I'm just trying to stay in the draw as long as possible, and get back on tour as quick as possible. That's the goal."

Cibilic, who sits ninth on the CS, set up his win with an 8.17 inside the first 11 minutes of his battle with Australians Heazlewood and Dylan Moffat and South African Joshe Faulkner.

The former world No.5, the busiest in the heat with eight rides, started with a 3.83 and 2.83 before the excellent score from three turns on a quality wave to lead on 12.0. Five minutes later, Cibilic increased his tally with a 4.5 and that proved more than enough.

He won with 12.67, ahead of Heazlewood (9.6), Moffat (9.17) and Faulkner (7.4), and next faces Samuel Pupo, Nolan Rapoza and Vaughan.

"I got a pretty average first one, then I just scooted wide," Cibilic said.

"There's kind of two or three banks out there, so I just held my ground wide with no priority and I was just lucky a couple of waves came through over there."

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