QLD's best Masters & Women hit the water this weekend

The 2014 Queensland Masters and Women’s surfing series will kick up a notch with a new naming-rights sponsor in Health Insurance Fund Australia (HIF).
The first event of the two-event series will take place this weekend on the Gold Coast, before heading north to the Sunshine Coast for the second and final event on June 14-15.
2013 Under 18 Girls Champion Isabella Nichols (Coolum, QLD) will be looking for wins in both the Under 18 and Open Women Divisions in this year’s series, and secure her place in the Queensland State team that will head to the Australian Titles in August.
Currumbin’s Mark Richardson will be looking to defend his Over 35 Men’s Title, but with the inclusion of newly eligible surfers such as Dave Reardon-Smith (Coolum, QLD) into the “Masters” arena, Richardson will have to be on his toes.
For the first time in 2014, HIF will be putting $500 up for grabs at each event for the “HIF Wave of the weekend” where one male and one female competitor will pocket $250 each for the highest scoring rides of the event.
The series is also the exclusive qualification pathway to the 2014 Australian SurfMasters Titles, where Queensland competitors will compete for the chance to become an Australian Surfing Champion in their respective divisions.
The winner of the Open Women’s division across the two-event series will also earn the right to compete in the Trials of the 2015 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Roxy Pro – Gold Coast.
As per the 2014 Surfing Australia Rule Book, allocations for the 2014 Australian Open Surf Masters Titles are as follows:
Open Women – Four + Wildcard
O/35 Women – Two
 
O/35 Men – Four
O/40 Men – Four
O/45 Men – Four
O/50 Men – Four
O/55 Men – Two
Photo credit: Whitmore/Surfing Queensland