The final day of the Quiksilver and Roxy Pro Gold Coast culminated with Taj Burrow (AUS), 33, and four-time ASP Women’s World Champion Stephanie Gilmore (AUS), 24, taking the respective wins in clean two-to-three foot (1 metre) waves at the primary venue of Snapper Rocks.

The opening stop on the 2012 ASP World Championship Tour, the Quiksilver and Roxy Pro Gold Coast enjoyed sunny weather, light winds and a capacity crowd for the final day of competition, with the world’s best surfers putting on a spectacular display of high-performance surfing.

Burrow defeated dangerous South American Adriano De Souza (BRA), 25, in a Final that came down to the wire. De Souza caught a wave in the dying minutes and launched into a massive air-reverse, requiring a 7.87 out of a possible 10 to take the lead. The judges deliberated until after the siren sounded and when it was announced that De Souza came a mere 0.27 short, Burrow was chaired up the beach and declared the 2012 Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast champion.

QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Taj Burrow (AUS) 15.86
2 – Adriano De Souza (BRA) 15.60

QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
SF 1: Adriano De Souza (BRA) 14.16 def. Josh Kerr (AUS) 13.57
SF 2: Taj Burrow (AUS) 15.56 def. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 14.20

QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Adriano De Souza (BRA) 16.43 def. Owen Wright (AUS) 13.73
QF 2: Josh Kerr (AUS) 14.43 def. Kelly Slater (USA) 13.04
QF 3: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 15.56 def. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 11.30
QF 4: Taj Burrow (AUS) 16.86 def. Adrian Buchan (AUS) 15.97

CURRENT ASP TOP 5 (After Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast):
1. Taj Burrow (AUS) 10,000 pts
2. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 8,000 pts
3. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 6,500 pts
3. Josh Kerr (AUS) 6,500 pts
5. Kelly Slater (USA) 5,200 pts
5. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 5,200 pts
5. Owen Wright (AUS) 5,200 pts
5. Adrian Buchan (AUS) 5,200 pts

Stephanie Gilmore (AUS), 24, takes her fourth Roxy Pro Gold Coast title after defeating Laura Enever (AUS), 20, in a hard-fought Final. Gilmore was dominant throughout the event, posting scores in the excellent range in every encounter throughout the draw.

ROXY PRO GOLD COAST FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 16.37
2 – Laura Enever (AUS) 14.20

ROXY PRO GOLD COAST SEMIFINALS RESULTS:
SF 1: Laura Enever (AUS) 16.70 def. Tyler Wright (AUS) 16.17
SF 2: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 18.30 def. Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 15.00

CURRENT ASP WOMEN’S TOP 3 (After Roxy Pro Gold Coast):
1. Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 10,000 pts
2. Laura Enever (AUS) 8,000 pts
3. Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 6,500 pts
3. Tyler Wright (AUS) 6,500 pts

Pictures: © ASP/ Kirstin, ASP/Carey, © ASP/ Robertson

SNAPPER ROCKS, Queensland/Australia (Wednesday, March 9, 2011) – Reigning 10-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA), 39, has secured his 46th elite tour win today, defeating defending event champion Taj Burrow (AUS), 32, to claim the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast presented by Land Rover.

The opening event of the 2011 ASP World Title season, the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast showcased the incredible depth of talent in the current ASP Top 34, but the victory went to the iconic Floridian.

“I’m having a lot of fun,” Slater said. “It’s pretty easy. You go out and surf Snapper by yourself, it’s pretty fun. To get to surf a contest is a bonus. I’d like to thank my girlfriend and everyone at Quiksilver for throwing the event. Everyone loves this event because the waves are so fun. I don’t think I’m the only one that thought Taj was the standout of the event. At some point had to stop getting 9s and I just picked the right heat.”

Burrow went on an absolute rampage on the final day of competition to oust Brett Simpson in the Quarterfinals and Jordy Smith in the Semifinals, but fell just short of the score needed to surpass Slater for the victory in the back-half of their duel, finishing runner-up overall.

Jordy Smith surfed with style, punch and bite throughout the duration of the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast, securing exciting last-minute victories over Joel Parkinson and Alejo Muniz. However, the big South African was unable to overtake Burrow in a repeat of last season’s Final.

The next stop on the 2011 ASP World Title season will be the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach presented by Ford Ranger from April 19 – 30, 2011.

QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST FINAL MATCH-UPS:

1 – Kelly Slater (USA) 11.20

2 – Taj Burrow (AUS) 10.17

QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST SEMIFINAL MATCH-UPS:

SF 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 16.77 def. Tiago Pires (PRT) 8.20

SF 2: Taj Burrow (AUS) 17.56 def. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 11.40

QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:

QF 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 15.40 def. Dusty Payne (HAW) 9.06

QF 2: Tiago Pires (PRT) 14.64 def. Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 14.40

QF 3: Taj Burrow (AUS) 17.30 def. Brett Simpson (USA) 11.60

QF 4: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 13.03 def. Alejo Muniz (BRA) 9.95

ASP WORLD TITLE TOP 5 (After Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast):

1. Kelly Slater (USA) 10,000 points

2. Taj Burrow (AUS) 8,000 points

3. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 6,500 points

3. Tiago Pires (PRT) 6,500 points

5. Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 5,200 points

5. Brett Simpson (USA) 5,200 points

5. Dusty Payne (HAW) 5,200 points

5. Alejo Muniz (BRA) 5,200 points

Pictures: ASP

While the Quiksilver pro was being delayed again and again, the Gudauskas brothers flew across the Pacific to light up Snapper Rocks and D’Bah. Patrick, 25, and his twin brother Dane have been terrorizing the Gold Coast documenting all the action via their blog, The3Tree.com. This…is the result…Absolutely enjoyable!

WARNING: the footage below contains copious amounts of ripping and smiles: