Komunity Project Great Lakes Pro Kicks off with a Bang at Boomerang Beach

Nagisha Tashiro with an impressive snap at Boomerang Beach : Surfing NSW/Smith[/caption] Macy Callaghan (Avoca, NSW) stormed into the next round of the event, posting the highest heat total of the morning – 16.00 (out of a possible 20 points). Callaghan surfed fast and hard in critical sections of set waves, to leave the rest of the field chasing two wave combinations to snake her lead. “I’ve had a few bad results in the last two events, so this first round victory has given me a good confidence boost,” said Callaghan. “I was just trying to get the biggest waves I could possibly get and I’m fortunate that I was holding priority when they came in.” Luke Hynd (Burleigh, Qld) put on a powerful display of backside surfing in his opening exchange of the mens division to take an exciting victory over Monty Tait (Maroubra, NSW), Mikey McDonagh (Lennox Head, NSW) and Shuji Nishi (Japan). In a heat that saw the lead pinball back-and-forth multiple times over the 20-minute affair, Hynd was able to shoot from third to first on the strength of an excellent 8.75 scoring wave, thus knocking Nishi and McDonagh from the event and Tait into second position. “I was nervous out there, seeing as though I know there’s swell on the way and really wanted to make into the next round,” said Hynd. “In the last five minutes of the heat, when I had priority, I knew I just had to wait for a solid set and a smaller wave wouldn’t give me the score I needed. Thankfully I got that one wave and posted the eight.” After finishing second in the recent Central Coast Pro at Avoca last week, Shane Holmes (Shelly Beach, NSW) continued to dominate the lineup notching up an impressive 8.50 wave score, which consequently put his fellow competitors on the ropes in the opening round. However, Holmes’ campaign came to a grinding halt in the second round when he faced off with recent Subway Surf Series Pro Junior Champion Ethan Ewing (Point Lookout, Qld) and Harry Bryant (Sunshine Beach, Qld) who bagged a series of respectable scores and the two progressing positions. “That wasn’t the ideal finish to this event,” said Holmes. “I felt good in the first round, but I didn’t pick the best waves in the last heat at all. Both Ethan and Harry surfed solid heats, so congrats to them.” NSW Pro Surf Series Dates and Locations: Carve Pro – Maroubra Beach, NSW 15-17 January, 2016 Telstra Stores Tweed Coast Pro – Cabarita Beach, NSW 1 – 4 Feb 2016 Central Coast Pro – Avoca Beach, NSW 9 – 12 Feb 2016 Komunity Project Great Lakes Pro presented by Rockstar Energy Drink – Boomerang Beach, NSW 15 – 18 Feb 2016 For more information on the Great Lakes, as well as accommodation options, check out: Web: www.greatlakes.org.au Facebook: www.facebook.com/greatlakesnsw Instagram:  www.instagram.com/greatlakesnsw]]>