Sand-gurgling, eye-watering, crowd-arousing funnels of joy are an epic way to start off the WSL Fantasy Surfer Season. Unfortunately, the forecast for Snapper this year starts with the word ‘contestable’. Which is forecaster speak for ‘fairly dogshit’. Chances are the Quik Pro Gold Coast for 2019 could start at D-Bah, with the off chance it will end at Greenmount if the swell kicks in later. The banks at Snapper have been scientifically termed as ‘rooted’, so hopefully, the pump gets moving or the swell gets on the pump enough to make it worthwhile down the line.
In saying all that, your obvious performers will be the ones to watch at this event. Cyclone Filipe is always key in rippable surf, last year’s rookie sensation Gryffindor Pina Colada will be excited to revisit a semis placing, and past winner/world champ Gabby Medina will be ready to flex his tattoo’d thighs, sending gushes of ocean jizz spraying into the air.
Here are your WSL Fantasy Surfer Picks for The Gold Coast 2019
Tier A - Grinners and Chicken Dinners
A top tier of top dogs all wanting you to put them in your kennel. It’s hard to pick who is the better option among this lot, apart from Filipe of course. The forecast and banks for this event are pretty similar to the year he schooled Julian Wilson in the final, asserting his dominance as pack leader in 3ft rights. Julian is another consideration, given he’s reigning event champ and has done well here in multiple years. The only thing holding anyone back with putting Julian in is that he’s hot and cold like a Jon Snow/Mother of Dragons love triangle.
Gabriel has won here before but, other than that one excellent result, he has a habit of losing early. Italo is another smiling assassin who could be dealing out the full rote goats to nail a yellow jersey. For me, he’s probably one who will fly above the radar without the limelight pressure someone like Gabby faces.
Owen is another past winner here who often goes unnoticed during the picks and is a low-percentage addition with high-percentage win ratio. A great option for those who like to go different strokes. Jordy is one who has failed to live up to his potential at Snapper, but he has to be in the mix considering his tube/carve/air game in pretty much anything.
The only two crew you’re not really considering are Conner Coffin and Tree Trunk Legs Bourez. The smaller forecast suits neither of them, so you can leave them on the bench for a later date.
In Short:
Favourites – Gabby and Filipe.
Dark Horses – Italo and Owen
Nervous Pick – Julian
Tier B - Panning For Nuggets In Sand
Sifting through this lot for the best picks is like sifting through the sand-churned Snapper line up for a grower. You could be getting glory, or you could be getting a stinky fat burger with a side of drop-in. The three Californian stooges have to all be in with a shot. That’s Kolohe, Kanoa and Colapintobean. All three of those guys have shown epic form at Snapper over the years and Kanoa has to be one of the smartest people on tour. I think he has some kind of brain link hook up with Jake Paterson when it comes to strategy. Yoda meets Skywalker type shit. Speaking of Jedi madness, the Sith Lord of tube riding is back on tour and has to be in your thoughts. Darth Florence can carve, can pull space wizardry, and can sniff out a tunnel better than a sniper-nosed honey badger.
Mikey Wright is another one who could get all hi-fi mullet on us. As could the Newcastle Neoblaster Ryan R-Cal Cannonball. He’s looking looser than a screw in Kanye’s noggin. There’s also Brazilian sophomores M-Rod and Ya-Go. Both will be deadly if it’s at D-Bah. There’s even a Seabass swimming around who could hook a few anglers with his slices, dices and mid-tier prices.
The few crew you’re not wasting a whole lot of energy on because of the smaller forecast are Ace Buchan, Jeremy Flores, Zeke Lau, Avoca Jesus or Panda.
Seth Moniz is a cheeky rookie creeping up into this pack and, while he could do amazing things, is hard to risk as a mid-tier when you want a newcomer at bargain slots.
In Short
Favourites – Double John, Kolohe, Kanoa, Colapintobean
Dark Horses – Mikey and M-Rod
Stinkfoot Picks – Yago & R-Cal
Tier C - A GOAT and the Herd
Kelly Slater. The GOAT. Winner of a record 4 Quik Pro Gold Coast Titles. In tier C! And, not in my team. If it was going to be piping Kirra, or even behind the rock, he’d be a shoo in. But, D-Bah doesn’t favour old bones and even though he’s got the constitution of Dracula, Kelly is also around the same age. I’m banking on younger contenders this year with some spray in their snaps and cartilage in their knee caps.
For me, guys like Jack Freestone as a local bet, Caio Ibelli who will be itching to prove his place on tour, and Jaddy ‘I’ve already qualified for 2020’ Baby, have to be up there as an option. Leo Fioravanti is another guy with a solid head on his shoulders and an even more solid rail game that could get lots of points come hooter time.
The crew who I think are surfers you’d leave out without (too much) worry are Richardo Cristie, Devid Silva and Jesse Mendes. But those Brazilian shred lords especially could prove me wrong. Local hope Soli Bailey could also be another option, but I’d prefer to see a bit more size in the forecast to put him in with extra confidence.
In Short
Favourites – Jack Freestone, Caio Ibelli
Dark Horses – Leo Fioravanti, Jaddy Baby
Reluctant exclusion – Kelly Slater
Images via::
Google, Instagram, the World Wide Web and Juan Medina for the feature shot of Freestone/
If you’re still chasing more Fantasy/Surf related news/content, then hit below on the latest episode from Lipped where Lakey Peterson joins them to chat honestly about being competitive, bouncing back from losses, where she thinks she can improve this year and the intensity of All-In.
Jimmy and Cahill also take a look at the first event for the 2019 WSL season the Quiksilver & Boost Pro’s from Snapper Rocks. Who’s going to reveal something new, who’s going to win and who’s going all the way this year.
And it’s fantasy time as the boys make their first picks for the Dragon x Lipped Podcast WSL Fantasy League – use the code lipped and get involved.
