Kaua'i's Andy Irons surfed into position for another world championship by winning the Rip Curl Pro Search men's contest yesterday.

The final day of the four-day contest was completed in 3- to 6-foot waves at La Jolla, Mexico.

Irons won four heats yesterday, capped by a convincing victory over California's Taylor Knox in the one-on-one final.

"Just being in the final is amazing," said Irons, 27. "I make a point of trying to make a few finals a year and to actually get a win is even better. Taylor is a good friend of mine, it's a great wave, and we've had such a good time here this week, so this is a perfect ending."

Irons took the lead for good midway through the 35-minute final after completing an aerial maneuver that received a score of 8.93 (out of 10). His final two-wave score was 16.86 to Knox's 11.33.

Earlier in the day, Irons had a near-perfect heat in his quarterfinal victory over younger brother, Bruce. Andy had wave scores of 9.5 and 8.6 for a total of 18.1.

Irons received $30,000 for the victory, which was his first contest win of the 2006 season.

He moved up to No. 2 in the 2006 World Championship Tour ratings. Defending world champion Kelly Slater of Florida is No. 1 with 4,233 points. Irons, a three-time former world champion, has 4,140.

"The momentum has begun and I know I need to capitalize on this win and carry it on into Jeffreys Bay (South Africa) at the next event and hopefully throughout the rest of the year," Irons said.

Among other Hawai'i surfers on the tour, Bruce Irons is No. 9, Fred Patacchia Jr. is No. 21, Pancho Sullivan is No. 23, and Roy Powers is No. 41.

The Rip Curl Pro Search was the fifth of 11 events on the 2006 tour. The next contest is the Billabong Pro, scheduled to begin July 12 at Jeffrey's Bay, South Africa.