Krui Pro Cruises Through Round Two

The view from the beach at Krui is a beauty. - WSL / Tim Hain

Just 16 men remain in contention for the inaugural Krui Pro title after the event ran through a stacked Round 2 draw. The morning saw solid long left-handers running down the reef, but during the last two heats of the day the onshore wind picked up and officials made the call to stop the event and wait for tomorrow morning for the next Round.

Skip McCullough from the USA has enjoyed some success at events in Indonesia in the past, finishing equal 3rd place in the Mentawais last year. This year the Krui Pro McCullough is showing that his backhand is also capable of producing big performances and winning heats.

Skip McCullough is best known for his forehand barrel riding, turns out he can tear the bag on his backhand as well. - WSL / Tim Hain

"I had never heard of this place before this event was called on, the wave here is world class, I'm glad this event is on because people should know about this spot," said McCullough. "A lot of the WSL events I do are in average beach-break conditions so I always enjoy coming to these Indonesian events to score some epic waves."

Bali's Garut Widiarta was on fire once again on Krui's long lefts, linking lightning fast turns on every single wave to score a massive heat win and send a warning to his fellow competitors that he means business.

Made 'Garut' Widiarta is one of Indonesia's most electric surfers. - WSL / Tim Hain

"The wind was up a little in my heat, but this wave is so good it didn't matter to me," Widiarta said. "I don't think too much about the competition, I think if I just try to get the best waves and have fun then I will hopefully make it."

South Australian Max Longhurst is having a great time here in Sumatra, scoring excellent waves and has posted one of his best competition results of the year, and he's still going after advancing into the final 16 today.

South Australian Max Longhurst is well suited to the long lefts at Krui. - WSL / Tim Hain

"It feels great to be surfing waves this good for a contest," Longhurst said. "It's the first time this year I've posted reasonable scores so I'm stoked to be surfing a perfect point instead of a summer beach-break. This point at Krui is epic! So many leg burners, it's perfect for training and frothing out!"

Jean Da Silva claimed another heat win at the Krui Pro today, demonstrating superior wave selection and matching those perfect waves with high performance carves and snaps.

Jean Da Silva has been a standout all event. - WSL / Tim Hain

"When I was planning my year and I saw this event open up I knew I had to come," Da Silva said. "Sometimes coming to a place like this can fire your surfing up for other events later in the year. It's only a QS1,000 but I think the confidence I will get here will help me for the next few events."