Mr. Price Pro

ASP 6 Star WQS Men's Event #19
ASP 5 Star WQS Womens Event #7
3A Surfing South Africa Pro Junior
North Beach Durban South Africa
29 June - 26 July 2008

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Wildcards poised for battle at Mr Price Pro Africa

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 29 June, 2008 : - - Durban -- The anticipated cold front that moved over Durban today promises excellent conditions for the start of the 6-Star ASP World Qualifying Series Mr Price Pro that gets underway tomorrow.

South Africa’s premier surf forecasting website wavescape.co.za predicts waves in the 1.5 to 2 metre region and a gentle offshore breeze at Durban’s New Pier on Monday, the perfect start to Surf City’s premier surfing event.

Former ASP World Champion Sunny Garcia, 38, (Hawaii) currently ranked fourth on the ASP WQS, has been granted a Mr Price wildcard into the Round of 96 and will be looking to capitalise on the opportunity to climb the WQS leader board.

“It feels good to be back in Durban, it’s still the Gunston for me and an event I always did well in, so I am happy to be back,” Garcia said. “I’m really happy that Mr Price gave me a wildcard, they could have given it to one of the South African guys so I really appreciate it and intend to make the most of it.”

Winner of the Gunston 500 in 1992, Garcia is no stranger to competing on the Durban beachfront and is looking forward to donning his competition singlet and heading out for his first heat on Wednesday.

“We came early this year so that I could get in the water and do some training,” Garcia said from the Mr Price Pro deck last night. “Being back on the WQS, there’s a lot of really good young kids and I’ve been impressed by their level of surfing and I know for me to do well I have to be in the best shape I can be.”

Joining Garcia in the Round of 96 will be ASP Africa campaigner Gary Van Wierengen (Scottburgh) as well as South African WQS competitors Warwick Wright (Durban) and Damien Fahrenfort (Cape Town). These four wildcard surfers will be seeded into the first of the money rounds where a fourth place finish will earn them US$500.

The two wildcards seeded into the Round of 144, one before the money rounds, are Rudy Palmboom jnr (Bluff) as well as yesterday’s Mr Price Pro Junior Champion Shaun Joubert (Mossel Bay). Both surfers will be looking to gain invaluable WQS experience against surfing’s future world beaters. Joubert is looking to debut on the WQS in 2009 while Palmboom is currently rated 67th in his first year on tour.

Joubert will take on arguably the tougher of the two heats against ASP WQS ratings leader Hizunome Bettero (Brazil) in the Round of 144 on Tuesday. In the 5-Star Women’s event which also rolls into gear tomorrow, 14-year-old Mr Price Pro Junior Girls Champion Bianca Buitendag (Victoria Bay) has earned the only Women’s wildcard into the Round of 48.

Buitendag is pitted against a trio of Brazilian surfers including top seed and World No. 11 Silvana Lima, Claudia Goncalves and Marina Werneck. Monday sees an action packed day of world class surfing starting with the Women’s Round of 50 at 08h00, the Men’s Round of 192 at 08h20 and wraps up with the Women’s Round of 48 from 12h20.

The 6-Star Mens WQS holds a prize money purse of over R1 million while the 5-Star Womens WQS offers R237 500. The Mr Price Pro is proudly presented by The Beach Café, Glodina, VW South Africa, Southern Sun, Daily News and Internet Solutions.

Previous reports:
# 1 : Durban's Mr Price Pro preps for action, celebrates year 40
# 2 : Mr. Price Pro welcoming Shaun Tomson back to Durban..
# 3 : Juniors to kick off South Africa's 6-Star WQS Mr Price Pro

# 4 : David Weare favoured South African for the Mr. Price Pro 
# 5 : ASP 6 star Mr. Price Pro WQS event goes live at New Pier 
# 6 : Women to compete on international stage at Mr Price Pro 

# 7 : Mr Price Pro Junior to kick off in punchy one-metre waves
# 8 : Joubert & Buitendag take top honours at Mr Price Pro Jnr

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