Frames: J-Bay's Shining Moments

Fans went nuts when Joel Parkinson (AUS) surpassed expectations with a win at the event as a wildcard in 1999.

In 2001, Jake Paterson (AUS) clinched his second consecutive title at Jeffreys Bay. He edged past Taylor Knox (USA) in the Final, winning by 0.80 points.

After the 2001 Finals, Paterson's fellow Australian teammates carried him up the beach in victory.

Supertubes circa 2002.

Iconic Australian goofyfooter Mark Occhilupo (AUS) showed off his trademark bottom turn at Supertubes in 2002.

With a handful of World Titles already on his resume, Kelly Slater (USA) showed no signs of letting up at J-Bay in 2002. Exhibit A: The champ, flying down the line.

Veteran Richard Lovett (AUS) caught one of the dream waves on offer at the 2002 event.

Mick Fanning (AUS) was emotional after taking the 2002 J-Bay title.

Fanning with runner-up Mick Lowe (AUS) atop the podium in 2002.

Slater worked the long barrels at Supertubes in 2003 en route to his second title there.

Occy's signature backhand attack and the powerful walls at Supertubes made for a deadly combination.

By 2003, Slater had already amassed six World Titles. Suffering from a broken toe earlier that year, he returned to form at J-Bay and clinched the event title.

Slater beat fellow Floridian Damien Hobgood in the Final. The event winner pocketed $30,000, making it the most lucrative surfing event ever staged in Africa up to that point.

Because of Occy's deep love for J-Bay, he and his then-fiancãe Mae named their son Jay Luciano after the place.

Sean Holmes (ZAF) earned the nickname "The Nemesis" when he proved to be the most threatening local wildcard in the 2004 season.

Slater threw up huge vertical snaps in 2004 in search of back-to-back titles.

Not to be outdone by his actual nemesis, Andy Irons (HAW) rose to the occasion, matching Slater's rides and then some.

Irons laid out for a victory splash when he claimed the 2004 J-Bay title.

Supertubes set the stage for a 2005 event that would see Slater claim his third title there.

The rivalry between Slater and Irons would become one of the most intense in sports. Early in the 2005 competition, another wave-for-wave exchange unfolded as Slater unleashed his precision.

Irons kept pace with some high-risk maneuvers of his own.

Parkinson put his own rail game on display in the 2005 contest.

With his classic, sweeping bottom turns, Occy took on another pumping swell at Supertubes.

Slater clinched his third Jeffreys Bay title in 2005. He needed a 9.23 (out of a possible 10) to take the crown and with 35 seconds remaining a set wave appeared, allowing him to find the winning score.

Slater defeated defending event champion and then-reigning World Champion Irons in a nail-biting final that saw professional surfing’s biggest rivals face each other for the first time in a two-man Final.

Though he was surpassed by Slater in the dying seconds of the Finals, Irons didn't go home empty-handed. The then-three-time Champion won US$2,000 for the best aerial maneuver during the Fosters Expression Session.

Adriano de Souza (BRA) had an impressive rookie showing at Jeffreys Bay in 2006 and would remain a solid contender at the event as his career progressed.

Fanning won the 2006 Billabong Pro title at Jeffreys Bay, ousting fellow Aussie Taj Burrow by less than a point.

After the closely contested Final, Fanning faced the crowd and reveled in his victory ride to shore.

Back with a vengeance in 2007, Burrow carved up Supertubes for the J-Bay title.

Burrow reigned victorious, en route to his best season finish to date -- No. 2.

Dane Reynolds (USA) scored a Perfect 10 in the 2009 Billabong Pro J-Bay on his way to a Semifinals finish.

Events at Jeffreys Bay continued to build in spectatorship and by the 2008 contest the beach was packed with fans.

Holmes continued to be a thorn in the side of many top-ranked competitors in 2009. But the Nemesis was ultimately undone by Reynolds during the battle for a spot in the Semis.

Fanning took advantage of the wide-open faces at the Supertubes pointbreak.

Slater put on another crowd-pleasing performance in 2005. The judges liked it too -- enough to give him a third event win.

Slater cooled off from a red-hot run through the 2008 event, which saw him claim his fourth J-Bay title.

Reynolds in 2009.

Surfers scoped out the waves on offer at the pointbreak in 2009.

With true veteran status in 2009, Parkinson proved to be the surfer to beat.

A decade after his wildcard victory, Parko took his second J-Bay title.

Three years removed from his event title in 2007, Burrow looked to improve his record in 2010.

With Slater winning in Jeffreys for the fourth time in 2008, Fanning was on a tear to even the score.

Australian Jay Thompson notched a Perfect 10 in the Round of 32 of the 2010 Billabong Pro J-Bay. But his 18.33 heat total would be his last winning score of the event.

Burrow lead into a huge layout during the 2010 event.

Jordy Smith (ZAF) gained instant celebrity status when the won the contest for his country in 2010.

In 2011, two-time event winner Fanning was the only thing standing in the way of a repeat victory for Smith.

Bolstered by his 2010 win and a No. 2 rank to start the season, Smith found his groove early on at the 2011 Billabong Pro J-Bay.

After a two-year hiatus, the elite Tour returned to Jeffreys Bay and Fanning returned to his old form.