There Is Still a Place for Tradition, Even in Surfing

The 30,000 spectators at the Op Pro Surfing Championships in Huntington Beach could not have asked for a better contrast in styles than that provided by Brad Gerlach of Leucadia and Tom Curren of Carpinteria Saturday in the second round of the main event.

On one side, there was Curren, 22, the World Champion and former two-time Op Pro champion. Curren’s style is so polished and consistent, his feet often seem glued to the board.

On the other side was Gerlach, 20, the aggressive 20-year-old challenger with a knack for dazzling moves that play well to the crowd.

On Saturday, the unanimous decision went to Curren, who has won a tour-high 80% of the heats in which he has competed in his career. He advances to today’s quarterfinals at 8 a.m. against Australian Terry Richardson, who beat Shaun Tomson of South Africa Saturday.

In the women’s contest, world champion Frieda Zamba of Flagler Beach, Fla., defeated San Clemente’s Jorja Smith, the tour’s rookie of the year, by a narrow margin in the semifinal. In the other semifinal, defending champion Jodie Cooper of Australia was ousted by Pam Burridge of Australia, setting up today’s final at 11:45 a.m.

In the other men’s quarterfinals, starting at 8 a.m., defending champion Mark Occhilupo will face fellow Australian Tom Carroll. Australia’s Barton Lynch, who beat Mike Parsons of Laguna Beach, will take on Martin Potter of England and Glen Winton will face fellow Australian Gary Elkerton.