Julian Wilson got far more out of going in reverse than he had a right to Monday at the Nike 6.0 Pier Pressure in Huntington Beach.

The Australian put on an absolutely dominant performance in the final, beating fellow Australian Stuart Kennedy 16.10-15.50. Chris Salisbury and Andrew Doheny finished third and fourth respectively.

Wilson used the windy conditions to get a series of backhand reverses that scored him an 8.0 and 8.10, while Kennedy and the others seemed to scrap for waves.

All three Aussies reached the final — a very telling result for both Australian and American surfers — but it was Wilson who towered over the entire event. Wilson had four of the top five and six of the top ten wave scores, including a 9.0,9.25 and 9.85 and all top five heats.

The most amazing part of his performance was that it was complete turnaround at Huntington for him.

“I’ve come here a few times and never done well,” Wilson said. “It’s hard to wrap your head around this wave.

“In that heat, it was just about catching a bunch of waves. That’s how you got scores. The wind was favorable for reverses and airs, and in the final you can’t hold back.”

Newport Beach’s Doheny, the lone American in the final, never got going. He kicked out of several waves, and his rides were short on the waves he was forced to keep. But despite the result, reaching the final slingshoted him from the 20s into fourth overall in the U.S. junior ratings. He’s now the top O.C. surfer on the junior tour comes into next month’s U.S. Open with a head of steam. 

“I feel really good about that,” Doheny said. “Hopefully, I keep the momentum going and get to Australia (for the world championship).”

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