Merle-Jones, Uemura rule waves

By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawai'i surfers Jesse Merle-Jones and Kekoa Uemura are hoping that practice leads to perfection in 2005.

Merle-Jones won the shortboard division and Uemura captured the longboard division of the Quiksilver Pro yesterday at Ma'ili Point. The finals were completed in 3- to 5-foot surf.

The contest was the third of five stops on the 2004-05 Macy's E-Series. The series is promoted as "practice" events for Hawai'i's up-and-coming professional surfers.

"It helps you stay in tune for the real tour," Merle-Jones said. "And the competition is good because all these guys rip."

But Merle-Jones ripped the most with a dominating performance in the shortboard final.

He clinched the victory late in the heat when he caught a 5-foot wave and proceeded to complete several top-to-bottom carves along the open section. The judges rewarded him with a score of 9.0 (out of 10).

"I lucked out with that one — that wave wedged up right in front of me," said Merle-Jones, 26. "I got to do some carves on the outside, and then it let me tee off on the inside with some bigger snaps. It was a killer wave."

He finished with a two-wave total of 16.5. Merle-Jones, who is originally from Kaua'i but now lives on O'ahu's North Shore, received $1,000 for the victory.

"It was perfect Ma'ili Point," he said. "You can just go out and have fun when it's like this."

Joel Centeio led early in the heat, but wound up in second place with a two-wave score of 12.25.

Dede Suryana finished third and Isaac Kaneshiro placed fourth.

Merle-Jones is one of several Hawai'i surfers who will compete on this year's World Qualifying Series (WQS). The top performers from the WQS can earn spots on the elite World Championship Tour, alongside surfers like world champion Andy Irons and Triple Crown champ Sunny Garcia.

"It's a great inspiration to see some of my friends on the (WCT)," Merle-Jones said. "I want to be right there with them — that's the plan for this year."

The longboard division featured an even more dominating performance by Uemura.

He opened the final heat with a near-perfect ride of 9.75 and followed it with an 8.5. On both waves, he displayed a variety of maneuvers, including nose-rides and sharp turns.

"You can never be satisfied," said Uemura, 22. "I enter all these contests for the experience. The competition keeps you fresh."

Uemura finished last year ranked No. 2 in the World Longboard Tour ratings.

"Last year was the best I've done, so there's some pressure on my shoulders now," he said. "But regardless of what happened last year, I always want to improve."

Uemura's performance overshadowed solid surfing by the other finalists.

Ned Snow had a two-wave score of 15.5 to place second. Keegan Edwards scored an 8.4 on one of his waves to place third. Kapono Nahina was fourth.

"Going up against these guys prepares you for the bigger contests," said Uemura, who received $800. "You know you have to be at your best in every heat."

Fred Patacchia Jr. won $500 for the best single wave in the Free Surf expression session.

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8101.