Early exit doesn’t cost Hareb
Sometimes, it’s just not your day.
Kiwi surfer Paige Hareb can attest to this after failing to get out of her opening heat at the World Surf League qualifying series’ (QS) White Buffalo Pro in Japan last week.
Setting her sights on a semifinal finish at the QS3000, the 27-year-old struggled to find a wave that held its face, as she found herself trying to force a score with one or two turns.
In decent swell, Hareb was only able to put together a heat total of 8.00, while the other three surfers in the round-two heat didn’t seem to have the same struggles.
‘‘Yep forget about that one,’’ Hareb said on Twitter after she was eliminated.
Fellow Kiwi Ella Williams didn’t have the same trouble Hareb ran into, as she surfed well to reach round four before being eliminated.
Despite the result, Hareb’s bid for requalification to the Championship Tour (CT) remains in tact.
The way results went heading into the quarterfinals - where meaningful points were on offer Hareb would have only fallen out of ninth position on the ladder if Australian Macy Callaghan won it.
Callaghan looked on track for a semifinal berth, but was knocked out by a last-second winner by South African Bianca Buitendag in the quarterfinal.
Buitendag was later beaten in the final by fellow CT surfer Hawaiian Coco Ho, who jumped from seventh to second on the QS ladder in her bid to hold her spot on the CT.
To qualify for the women’s CT, surfers must finish in the top six on the QS.
However, if a surfer on the CT finishes in the QS top six but requalifies with a top 10 finish on the CT, the next best finishing QS surfer moves.
As the ladders stand, three surfers above Hareb on the QS - Sage Erickson, Johanne Defay and Keely Andrew - hold automatic qualifying spots on the CT which means Hareb would qualify as the next best finisher if the QS ended today.
However, with one event left on the calendar, Hareb will look to hold her position if not improve it.
The Taranaki local, as well as Williams, will head to Australia this week for the QS6000 Port Stephens New South Wales Pro. The last event of the year, it is also one of the six on tour with the most points on offer.
The event runs from November 2-5.
Billy Stairmand and Korbin Hutchings remain in the contest in round four, while Raiha Ensor was eliminated from the women’s contest in round three.