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BIG SURF AND BIG SCORES DAY 2 O’NEILL COLD WATER CLASSIC PRES. BY JEEP

SANTA CRUZ, California (Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2007) – The surf increased overnight with solid four-to-six foot (2 metre) waves pulsing through Steamer Lane for Day 2 of the O’Neill Cold Water Classic presented by Jeep, and competitors rose to the improved conditions, exhibiting some of the most dynamic surfing of the season.

The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Qualifying Series (WQS) 4-Star event holds a lot on the line with the $75,000 prize purse as well as valuable qualifying points, but the O’Neill Cold Water Classic presented by Jeep also carries the added prestige of being the final event on the 2007 Macy’s California Trifecta Surf Series presented by Jeep (an ASP North America Specialty Series).

The Macy’s Trifecta culminates at Steamer Lane, offering an additional $15,000 prize purse to the top 3 finishers, as well as an all-new Jeep Patriot, valued at $26,000, to the eventual champion.

Jay Phillips (Gold Coast, AUS), in his first-ever competition at the O’Neill Cold Water Classic presented by Jeep, posted impressive wins in both his Round 1 and Round 2 heats today, dominating the punchy righthanders on his forehand and netting the event high single-wave score of an 8.83 out of a possible 10.

“I’m so happy to be here as it’s my first time ever surfing Steamer Lane,” Phillips said. “I’ve brought the family and we’re really just enjoying the beauty up here. I’m extremely comfortable out there having surfed pointbreaks my entire life. I think today, the conditions are washing through a little bit, but there are still some great waves to be had.”

Once touted as one of Australia’s greatest exports, Phillips has taken a brief sabbatical from professional competition, but the recent exploits of his fellow countrymen have reignited the competitive flame.

“Back home, Mick (Fanning) and Dean (Morrison) and Joel (Parkinson) have been telling me that they want to see a Jay Phillips comeback,” Phillips said. “Seeing those guys doing so well at that level has really motivated me to give it a go again. At the moment, I’m just competing in select events, but I think the Cold Water is an event I could do really well at, and I would love to claw my way onto the Dream Tour.”

Dane Ward (San Clemente, CA) caused a big upset today in eliminating local favorite Josh Mulcoy (Santa Cruz, CA) from O’Neill Cold Water Classic competition. Facing Mulcoy, another Santa Cruz standout in Josh Loya as well as fellow junior Blake Jones (Melbourne Beach, FL), Ward wasted no time, racking up an impressive 8.00 out of a possible 10 for blistering series of backhand hacks.

“I’ve been watching heats all day and the guys who catch a lot of waves get through the heats,” Ward said. “I thought Loya was going to go, but he didn’t and that wave stood up really well. I’m stoked I got the score and I’m looking forward to getting through a few more heats.”

In addition to his campaign in the ASP WQS 4-Star O’Neill Cold Water Classic presented by Jeep, Ward will also be competing in the Oakley Pro Junior ASP North America Championships, the first ASP Grade-3 in North American history, which will begin on Friday, Oct. 12, 2007.

“Definitely making it through a few heats in the WQS event builds the confidence heading into the juniors of Friday,” Ward said. “I need a pretty solid result to claw my way into the top 4 for Australia so I’ll just be taking it heat by heat until then.”

As the final event on the 2007 ASP North America Pro Junior Series, the Oakley Pro Junior will play a deciding role in determining the top-4 junior surfers of the season, who will then receive entry into the prestigious Billabong ASP World Junior Championships next January.

Competition at the O’Neill Cold Water Classic presented by Jeep is scheduled to recommence tomorrow morning at 8am with Heat 1 of Round 3.

O'NEILL COLD WATER CLASSIC CONTEST RESULTS:

O’Neill Cold Water Classic pres. by Jeep – ASP WQS 4-Star
Round 1: 160 surfers remaining (1st and 2nd advance)
Heat 7: Brandon Roberts (ZAF) 11.20, Sebastian Zietz (HAW) 10.46, Tommy Bursian (PRI) 6.67, Sam McGee (USA) 6.66
Heat 8: Jay Phillips (AUS) 12.16, Layne Harrison (USA) 11.00, David Giddings (USA) 8.60, Thomas Petriken (USA) 5.90
Heat 9: Matt Meola (USA) 10.10, Rylan McCart (USA) 9.00, Marshall Alberga (USA) 7.40, TJ Mikus (USA) 6.47
Heat 10: Kai Barger (HAW) 11.36, David Post (USA) 10.24, Brent Reilly (USA) 7.63, Eddie Lester (USA) 5.10
Heat 11: Josh Mulcoy (USA) 11.44, Jason Harris (USA) 9.76, Nick Kovack (USA) 8.90, Rory Parker (HAW) 6.76
Heat 12: Tyler Smith (USA) 12.67, Dane Ward (USA) 9.23, Jeffrey Lowe (USA) 5.57, Jordan Gaudet (USA) 5.30
Heat 13: Leif Engstrom (USA) 9.57, David Gonsalves (HAW) 7.00, Cory Kvenild (USA) 5.73, Michael Bailey (USA) 5.70
Heat 14: Travis Mellem (USA) 12.33, Ryan Sakal (USA) 6.47, Riley Metcalf (USA) 5.74, Shane Murray (USA) 3.60
Heat 15: Kiron Jabour (HAW) 12.13, Matt Pagan (USA) 12.00, Richie Collins (USA) 11.67, Austin Smith-Ford (USA) 8.87
Heat 16: Javier Swayne (HAW) 14.67, Randy Bonds (USA) 12.00, Brandon Guilmette (USA) 9.24, Andy Robson (USA) 6.30

Round 2: 128 surfers remaining (1st and 2nd advance)
Heat 1: Chris Dennis (TTO) 10.27, Luke Davis (USA) 8.17, Sean Hayes (USA) 6.77, Peter Mussio (USA) 5.64
Heat 2: Adam Lambert (HAW) 12.10, Omar Ercheverry (USA) 11.90, Sterling Spencer (USA) 11.70, Jesse Colombo (USA) 8.50
Heat 3: Billy Kemper (USA) 9.03, Andrew Bennett (USA) 8.93, Granger Larsen (HAW) 7.83, Jamie Parkhurst (USA) 3.87
Heat 4: Sean Taylor (USA) 10.73, Peter Mel (USA) 10.50, Anthony Ruffo (USA) 10.43, Kyle Ramey (HAW) 6.53
Heat 5: Johnny Craft (USA) 10.74, Jake Kirschenbaum (USA) 9.5, Kevin Kapsky (HAW) 6.27, Ben Graeff (USA) 5.20
Heat 6: Zach Plopper (USA) 10.20, Clay Marzo (HAW) 9.83, Tarik Khashoggi (USA) 9.17, Matt Mohagen (USA) 3.67
Heat 7: Layne Harrison (USA) 14.23, Kellen Ellison (USA) 10.50, Brandon Roberts (ZAF) 9.00, Chris Drummy (USA) 7.20
Heat 8: Jay Phillips (AUS) 11.17, Sebastian Zietz (HAW) 9.00, Roger Eales (USA) 7.50, Jeremy Sherwin (HAW) 5.53
Heat 9: David Post (USA) 9.84, Eddie Guilbeau (USA) 9.23, Justin Swartz (USA) 6.33, Matt Meola (USA) 4.43
Heat 10: Kai Barger (HAW) 11.10, Zach Keenan (USA) 10.06, Cory Arrambide (USA) 8.23, Rylan McCart (USA) 5.37
Heat 11: Dane Ward (USA) 11.50, Josh Loya (USA) 10.26, Josh Mulcoy (USA) 6.70, Blake Jones (USA) 6.63
Heat 12: Tyler Smith (USA) 10.80, Ian Ekberg (USA) 8.16, Jason Harris (USA) 7.50, Casey Landvogt (USA) 6.20
Heat 13: Ryan Sakal (USA) 9.50, Ryan Briggs (USA) 7.73, Wesley Larsen (HAW) 4.80, Leif Engstrom (USA) 5.83
Heat 14: Travis Mellem (USA) 12.00, David Gonzalves (HAW) 6.93, Golden Depesa (HAW) 5.77, Matt Myers (USA) 5.70
Heat 15: Randy Bonds (USA) 9.17, Kiron Jabour (HAW) 8.70, Casey Brown (HAW) 4.80, Garth Engelhorn (USA) 4.00
Heat 16: John Daniels (USA) 11.93, Shey Yates (USA) 7.83, Javier Swayne (PER) 5.53, Matt Pagan (USA) 4.86

All O’Neill Cold Water Classic Surf Contest presented by Jeep as well as Oakley Pro Junior action will be webcast LIVE at www.coldwaterclassic.net

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