The Essential Costa Rica Open Pro QS3,000 is set along the exotic shoreline of Esterillos Este. - WSL / Andrew Nichols
It's make or break time for the North America Qualifying Series (QS) for both the men and women heading into the essential Costa Rica Open -- the final event on the 2016 North America schedule. With both titles hanging in the balance, a ticket into next year's prime events is on the line. Also, with 3,000 points on offer for both the men and women toward their respective QS campaigns, Esterillos Este could be a pivotal turning point in their efforts heading into the final stretch.
Meah Collins will be looking to hold onto her No. 1 spot to earn her first North America QS title over current No. 2 Tia Blanco. With Sage Erickson and Chelsea Tuach both competing in France on the Championship Tour (CT), the race is primarily narrowed to Collins and Blanco. Collins will be matching her worst result with an Equal 25th, however Blanco will be dropping an Equal 37th -- providing a 225 point difference.
Collins is all too familiar with Central America and finding success -- though she will be trading the cobblestone pointbreak of Punta Roca for the beachbreak of Esterillos Este. - WSL / Kurt Steinmetz
"I've had a lot of make it or break it events lately from needing to do well in the Supergirl, to earn a wild card spot in the US Open, then needing to win the one trials heat to earn a spot in the CT," Collins said. "And now having to do well in Costa Rica to claim the North America QS title -- I'm just going to do my best to get to the finals. It would be awesome to take a win here not just for the ratings but to get my first QS win under my belt. Costa Rica has such amazing waves, it's great to bring a WSL event back to this area. I love surfing different breaks around the world, and it's going to be so fun to be able to compete here."
Collins and Blanco will be going round for round, with Blanco needing to better Collins result by two spots in order to surpass her for the North America title. Chelsea Roett, Kirra Pinkerton, Shelby Detmers, Alexxa Elseewi, and Autumn Hays all have an outside chance of claiming the title but would need to earn a Final's appearance, or win the event, for that opportunity if Collins and Blanco have early exits.
Sizeable beachbreaks haven't been a problem for Blanco in the past -- earning a runner-up at the Shoe City Pro in Huntington Beach, CA earlier this year. - WSL / Nilton Baptista
On the men's side of things, current North America rankings leader Kilian Garland finds himself with a golden opportunity to earn a good result here in Esterillos Este. If Garland makes it to the Semifinals, he secures the North America title outright for the first time in his career and the all-important chance of competing in the QS10,000 events next year. The California-native will keep his focus on his own surfing and look to head into the final stretch of this competitive season with some big momentum.
Garland's odds to claim the title went up ten-fold with Pat Gudauskas counting out of the event. The closest threat is nearly 500 points back -- although a much bigger picture is in mind for the rest of 2016. - WSL / John W. Ferguson
"I am really excited to be here in Costa Rica and can't wait to get the event underway with some surfs in beforehand," Garland said. "I have not been here, but after doing some research it's looking like a really fun spot. The waves in Costa Rica go off and I am sure we will have great waves. I'm really looking forward to the power they have here. I am never going to count anyone out. I just want to better my results for this year. If I can claim The North America Rankings then I'll be stoked, but I still have more goals for this year."
While Garland sits nearly 500 points over Taylor Clark and Lucca Mesinas, both have a chance at claiming the title if they earn runner-up and Garland has an early loss. All three sit on the bubble of the Top 100 to earn a spot into the coveted Hawaiian leg with not a lot of time to make a run at it.
Clark is looking at his best-ever ranking on the QS sitting at No. 121, but will need to crack the Top 100 in a big way to have a shot at competing in Hawaii after a Round 2 loss at the Billabong Pro Cascais. - WSL / Laurent Masurel
"It's cool to be in reach of the North America title but either way I need to make heats so just going to take it one heat at a time," Clark said. "I'm really wanting to get into the Triple Crown so I just need to do well here and Brazil.
I'm just really excited to be surfing in warm water with some fun waves. I've always loved Costa."
Mesinas will look to better his Round 3 performance from the Quiksilver Pro Casablanca in order to jump into the Top 100 from his current spot at No. 135. - WSL / Laurent Masurel
The 2016 Essential Costa Rica Open Pro will be streamed LIVE through www.worldsurfleague.com
to witness all the action as it unfolds. A 7:30 a.m. local time Call will determine an 8:00 a.m. Start for either the men's or women's event Wednesday morning.
Implications and Insight Into Costa Rica
Andrew Nichols
It's make or break time for the North America Qualifying Series (QS) for both the men and women heading into the essential Costa Rica Open -- the final event on the 2016 North America schedule. With both titles hanging in the balance, a ticket into next year's prime events is on the line. Also, with 3,000 points on offer for both the men and women toward their respective QS campaigns, Esterillos Este could be a pivotal turning point in their efforts heading into the final stretch.
Meah Collins will be looking to hold onto her No. 1 spot to earn her first North America QS title over current No. 2 Tia Blanco. With Sage Erickson and Chelsea Tuach both competing in France on the Championship Tour (CT), the race is primarily narrowed to Collins and Blanco. Collins will be matching her worst result with an Equal 25th, however Blanco will be dropping an Equal 37th -- providing a 225 point difference.
"I've had a lot of make it or break it events lately from needing to do well in the Supergirl, to earn a wild card spot in the US Open, then needing to win the one trials heat to earn a spot in the CT," Collins said. "And now having to do well in Costa Rica to claim the North America QS title -- I'm just going to do my best to get to the finals. It would be awesome to take a win here not just for the ratings but to get my first QS win under my belt. Costa Rica has such amazing waves, it's great to bring a WSL event back to this area. I love surfing different breaks around the world, and it's going to be so fun to be able to compete here."
Collins and Blanco will be going round for round, with Blanco needing to better Collins result by two spots in order to surpass her for the North America title. Chelsea Roett, Kirra Pinkerton, Shelby Detmers, Alexxa Elseewi, and Autumn Hays all have an outside chance of claiming the title but would need to earn a Final's appearance, or win the event, for that opportunity if Collins and Blanco have early exits.
On the men's side of things, current North America rankings leader Kilian Garland finds himself with a golden opportunity to earn a good result here in Esterillos Este. If Garland makes it to the Semifinals, he secures the North America title outright for the first time in his career and the all-important chance of competing in the QS10,000 events next year. The California-native will keep his focus on his own surfing and look to head into the final stretch of this competitive season with some big momentum.
"I am really excited to be here in Costa Rica and can't wait to get the event underway with some surfs in beforehand," Garland said. "I have not been here, but after doing some research it's looking like a really fun spot. The waves in Costa Rica go off and I am sure we will have great waves. I'm really looking forward to the power they have here. I am never going to count anyone out. I just want to better my results for this year. If I can claim The North America Rankings then I'll be stoked, but I still have more goals for this year."
While Garland sits nearly 500 points over Taylor Clark and Lucca Mesinas, both have a chance at claiming the title if they earn runner-up and Garland has an early loss. All three sit on the bubble of the Top 100 to earn a spot into the coveted Hawaiian leg with not a lot of time to make a run at it.
"It's cool to be in reach of the North America title but either way I need to make heats so just going to take it one heat at a time," Clark said. "I'm really wanting to get into the Triple Crown so I just need to do well here and Brazil. I'm just really excited to be surfing in warm water with some fun waves. I've always loved Costa."
The 2016 Essential Costa Rica Open Pro will be streamed LIVE through www.worldsurfleague.com to witness all the action as it unfolds. A 7:30 a.m. local time Call will determine an 8:00 a.m. Start for either the men's or women's event Wednesday morning.
Tia Blanco
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Essential Costa Rica Open
A cearense Silvana Lima conquistou o título do QS 3000 Essential Costa Rica Open e ganhou duas posições no QS.
A critical Day 4 of action at the Essential Costa Rica Open Pro QS3,000 unfolded at Esterillos Este.
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The Brazilian clinched 3,000 points and her first major victory of 2016 over Pauline Ado -- and moving her to No. 4 on the QS rankings.
Top seeds debuted, and dominated, on the shores of Esterillos Este with powerful performances throughout the day.