Rookie of the Year, Not the World Champ, and the World Champ. Photos: ASP/Cestari/Kirsten/Robertson
With the start of the 2014 Samsung Galaxy World ASP World Tour just about to get underway, I’ve made a few predictions involving Kelly Slater, Taj Burrow, and Mitch Crews.
1. Kelly Slater will enter every event but not win the World Title.
Every year, there is a lot of talk about whether or not Slater will do the tour. Will he enter every event? Does he really want it? The answer is, yes, of course. He’ll be there until he feels he can’t win it anymore. Slater isn’t the type of guy to compete just to make up the numbers, and with a record like his, you can see he knows how to win.
There’s no question he’s in prime position to win it this year. He dominated at the Volcom Pipe Pro. It was one of those competitions where, from day one, you just knew he’ll be holding the trophy above his head at the end. He gets into that weird zen zone and he’s just unbeatable. But he won’t win the tour this year for the following reason.
2. Taj Burrow will enter every event and win the World Title
Taj always rips and always finishes the year without winning the tour. This year is different. He finished fifth last year without really getting in his zone. Although it’s a slightly different zone than Slater’s, it’s just as impressive.
The last two years have seen consistency win the year. This will be Taj’s year of reliability. He will place highly in all events and win the prized jewel in this manner. It will be an epic moment for him and the whole surfing community, because everyone loves the guy.
3. Mitch Crews will finish in the top ten and win Rookie of the Year
Mitch rips and can do everything needed to succeed at this level of competitive surfing. He also comes from the Gold Coast, which has a knack for churning out World Champion surfers. Every day you paddle out on the Goldie, you’re competing against hundreds of your best mates and striving to shine above the high level of surfers. It’s this upbringing that will mean Mitch does well in the World Tour environment.
