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The Oakley Pro Junior is the Junior element to the Macy's CA Trifetca Surf Series, held in conjunction with Nike Lower's Pro, Oakley Newport Pro, and the O'Neill Coldwater Classic. The Oakley Pro Junior draws its ranks from only the very best young surfers in the professional arena. OPJ http://www.surfingthemag.com/events/opj/08/opj-series.htm The Oakley Pro Juniors are Grade-2 rated ASP North America events that offer a $10,000-prize purse at the Nike 6.0 Surfbout and Oakley Newport Pro, and a Grade-3 at the O'Neill Cold Water Classic with $15,000 up for grabs and serves as the at the ASP North American Championships. In addition, the 2008 series will offer a $10,000 year end cash bonus to the top three point leaders on the Macy's CA Trifecta. OPJ Trifecta http://www.surfingthemag.com/events/opj/08/trifecta.htm
But maybe more noteworthy than any of the cash prizes, the Oakley Pro Junior held in conjunction with the Nike 6.0 Lower's Pro will serve as the North American qualifying event for the 2008 Oakley Pro Junior Global Challenge held in Bali this October. Amassing all the Oakley Pro Junior winners from around the world, including Australia, South Africa, Europe, Japan, and South America, the Oakley Global Challenge is an opportunity to surf for bragging rights, a major cash prize purse, and world domination. OPJ Global http://www.surfingthemag.com/events/opj/08/opj-challenge.htm On the domestic side of things, facing off at California's premier competition venues, the Oakley Pro Junior series provides ASP North American junior competitors an opportunity to earn maximum points towards the 2008 ASP Billabong World Junior Championships. International competitors are more than welcome, they just do not earn points towards their World qualification, but it does provide them with an opportunity to surf against America's best and vie for the Trifecta prizing. Competitors must be 19-years of age or under as of January 1, 2008. The draw pits 10 top rated Junior competitors from around the world against the top 20 highest rated North Americans. Qualifying through their results at the 2007 Billabong World Juniors, the two highest rated surfers from Australia, Japan, Africa, Europe, South America and Hawaii will receive seeds into the event to compete against a field of top North Americans. The American surfers are seeded into the events based on their ASP North America Junior Grade results from the previous year. The Oakley Pro Junior culminates at the 2008 O'Neill Coldwater Classic at world famous Steamer Lane in Santa Cruz with the ASP North America Championship event. The Oakley Pro Junior ASP North America Championships will decide the final seeding into the World Championships in addition to determining the Macy's California Trifecta Surf Series Junior Champion. The ASP World Junior Series is a global tour that offers an important competitive arena for emerging professional surfers. The Junior Tour culminates each year with the Billabong World Junior Championships, where the top five surfers from each ASP region compete for the World Junior Title. Past winners include Andy Irons (HAW), Joel Parkinson (AUS), Adriano de Souza (BRA), and Kekoa Bacalso (HAW). This year, there are 10 scheduled ASP North America events for domestic competitors to accumulate qualification points. Although surfers have 10 opportunities to accumulate points, the highly competitive fields at each Oakley Pro Junior makes it crucial for them to perform at their peak in every heat. Three-quarters of their results will count toward their overall yearend standing, with only the top four surfers receiving a seed into the World Junior Championships. A fifth seed is given to the highest rated junior competitor on the WQS ratings. The Oakley Pro Junior events provide crucial opportunities for the top North American surfers to earn these coveted qualifying points. |
