Mick Fanning and Mason Ho indulge in some of G-Land’s finest fruits. We look forward to seeing more of Grajagan Bay this year. Photo: Rip Curl
On Wednesday, broadcasting live from the WSL’s headquarters in Santa Monica, Pat O’Connell and Chris Coté revealed the men’s and women’s Championship Tour schedules for 2020 with a few minor tweaks and one major change. The bombshell? Grajagan Bay (aka G-Land) is back on tour after a 22-year hiatus on both the men’s and women’s schedules.
Due to the fact that the 2020 schedule has to account for the Olympics in late July and early August, and the 2020 ISA World Games in May, according to the ISA, the first three events on tour this year are noticeably packed tightly together with very few days in between – there are just three off days between the Gold Coast event and Bells, and four between Bells and Margaret River.
What’s notable for 2020, too, are things that will not change. Namely, the Freshwater Pro will head back to the WSL/Kelly Slater Wave Co. Surf Ranch in Lemoore despite the WSL’s acquisition of the former NLand Surf Park in Austin, Texas, and confirmation the League will be retrofitting the facility with its proprietary tech.
And, as we reported earlier this year, Trestles continues to remain conspicuously absent despite it being a favorite among fans and athletes.
According to Pat O’Connell, the concept behind the tour schedule’s few tweaks is to make it fair for all athletes. “There’s a balance on tour, we’re looking at rights, lefts, beach breaks, and point breaks,” he said in the broadcast.
“The idea is best surfers best waves and by every stretch of the imagination, we’ve achieved that,” O’Connell continued.
Below are the men’s and women’s schedules in their entirety.
Men’s 2020 WSL CT Schedule:
- Corona Open Gold Coast March 26-April 5, 2020
- Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach April 8-18, 2020
- Margaret River Pro April 22-May 2, 2020
- Quiksilver Pro G-Land June 4-14, 2020
- Oi Rio Pro June 18-27, 2020
- Corona Open J-Bay July 7-19, 2020
- Tahiti Pro August 26-September 6, 2020
- Michelob Ultra Pure Gold Freshwater Pro Sept 15-20, 2020
- Quiksilver Pro France October 1-11, 2020
- MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal Oct 14-25, 2020
- Billabong Pipe Master’s December 8-20, 2020
Women’s 2020 WSL CT Schedule:
- Corona Open Gold Coast March 26-April 5, 2020
- Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach April 8-18, 2020
- Margaret River Pro April 22-May 2, 2020
- Quiksilver Pro G-Land June 4-14, 2020
- Oi Rio Pro June 18-27, 2020
- Corona Open J-Bay July 7-19, 2020
- Michelob Ultra Pure Gold Freshwater Pro Sept 15-20, 2020
- Roxy Pro France October 1-11, 2020
- MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal Oct 14-25, 2020
- Maui Pro Nov 25-Dec 6, 2020
