Gallery: Can Jack Robinson Three-Peat Margaret River as the Mid-Year Cut Looms?

On its day, Western Australia arguably has the bluest water on the Championship Tour. There are moments when Margaret River can hold its own against Pipeline and Teahupo’o in terms of boasting a vivid aquamarine color.

Yesterday, which had 18 opening round heats of the 2025 Margaret River Pro, was one of those days. A cloudless sky stayed spotless the entire day as head-high to overhead sets provided plenty of entertaining moments and end-section grunt. It’s not The Box, but there’s a clear and refreshing power to these waves, and it rewards those who lean into it.

One takeaway from yesterday’s heats is that, for some, pressure makes diamonds. Several surfers within reach of the mid-year cut, both above or below the threshold, rose to the occasion. Per the WSL, of the 10 excellent scores earned in the men’s Opening Round, seven of them came from six surfers amongst the closest to the cut-line: Cole Houshmand (17th), Samuel Pupo (26th), Joao Chianca (22nd), Connor O’Leary (20th), Matthew McGillivray (19th), and Liam O’Brien (23rd).

LOB, sitting just outside the cut line, looked at ease while bashing lips and sinking his DHD into the right. He looked far more comfortable in the lineup than world No. 2 Yago Dora and wildcard Winter Vincent. Two years ago, Liam beat Kelly Slater here in what was almost the GOAT’s sendoff before he was granted a season wildcard for the following season. Now, Liam is on the ropes. But he will always be swinging. 

“These heats are all pretty important, as everyone knows, so any one I can get is a good one,” he said. “But yeah, it’s always nerve-wracking, first heat of the comp. You don’t want to stumble early, but I was stoked to get that one out of the way. The West is somewhere I’ve always loved. I’ve got a lot of good friends over here, and it’s one of my favorite stops on Tour for sure, so stoked to be back.”

Another surfer who has consistently squared up with Margies is Matthew McGillivray, who, over the past four years, has slammed the end section over the rocks to save his spot on tour. His past results here are 3rd, 3rd, 9th, and 17th. Yesterday, he got an early morning win over the ever-dangerous Ethan Ewing and new dad Ryan Callinan.

“The waves are cooking today, so everyone’s really excited,” he said. “I was really nervous about coming up against Ethan and Ryan. It came down to the last wave for me, so the pressure was on, and I was definitely feeling it. But I was just happy to not fall on that last turn, and yeah, I was stoked to make it through. It’s a great confidence boost. After Burleigh Heads I was a little bit bummed, and yeah, hopefully this is a better event for me. I’m excited.”

Speaking of excitement, the crowd was all over the local boy and reigning champ, Jack Robinson, who produced the highest single-wave score of the day (8.93) for his searing carve to end-section stomp. Robbo has actually won the event in his last two appearances, 2022 and 2024 (He was injured and missed the 2023 comp). That means he has not lost a heat at Margaret River since 2021. And there’s no John John Florence to challenge him this time around.

“I knew that wave was out there, it was just about getting on it,” said Jack, who rode an Eric Arakawa blade with the classic Andy Irons Rising Sun design. “It’s good to start like that, and yeah, it kind of came down to the end a little bit to get that one. But we’re back home and feeling a lot of support and love and support from the crowd, so it’s awesome. I see so many kids and everyone just around and supporting, and yeah, just soaking all the energy up, so it’s good. I think it just gives you a good feeling to be back. You go out there and you focus, but it’s also just a good feeling to have all the support. I’m just happy to be back home. It’s pretty simple, go and surf and have a good time.”

The highest scoring heat of the day belonged to Cole Houshmand (16.43), Sammy Pupo (16.23) and Barron Mamiya (11.26). Cole absolutely belted the lip on with solid backhand hooks. Sammy, though considerably smaller than Cole, matched him blow for blow. 

But for sheer entertainment value, the heat to watch was with Jordy Smith, Joao and wildcard Mikey McDonagh. The latter two got into a battle paddle for the ages, both racing frantically to get back to the lineup and get a higher priority. So violent was their splashing, arms and shoulders colliding, that Jordy, sitting out back, couldn’t help but laugh and hold his arms out wide to become an informal finish line. Mikey eventually outran Joao, who clapped his hands in appreciation for the duel. 

Brother battled brother with major consequences on the line. Crosby Colapinto (ranked 29th) desperately needs a massive result to get above the cut line. But he got sent to the Elimination Round by his own big brother. Griffin (16th) advanced to the Round of 32 with Leonardo Fioravanti, but is not entirely safe from the cut yet. A bummer for Crosby as he missed two events due to injury and hasn’t found consistent footing this year. The 2024 Rookie of the Year has a heat with Deivid Silva and Edgard Groggia with his CT future on the line. 

More storylines that have popped up: Al Cleland Jr. (Who I don’t think has much experience at Margaret River but hammed the sliced sessions anyway), reigning event champ Gabriela Bryan picking up where she left off, and local wildcard Bronte Macaulay beating Caitlin Simmers and Lakey Peterson. 

As the day wore on, the ocean went from blue to golden as the women surfed their opening round. Last season, Sawyer Lindblad rampaged to a runner-up result at Margaret River to save her season and eventually won the 2024 Rookie of the Year. She wants another big result as she’s the 10th and last surfer above the women’s cut line. Beating Molly Picklum and injury replacement Nadia Erostarbe in the first heat of the day isn’t a bad way to start. 

How’s this for pressure: Because the women’s CT field is expanding from 18 to 26 surfers in 2026, only one woman will be cut at Margaret River and go to the Challenger Series. Currently, that spot is Sally Fitzgibbons, who made the final on the Gold Coast yet somehow didn’t move a single spot from her last-place ranking. Sally, never one to give up, has been relegated to the Challenger Series every year that the Mid-season Cut was reincarnated four years ago. The 34-year-old needs at least a quarterfinal to keep the dream alive in 2026.

Rio Waida became the 11th man to officially make the last interaction of the mid-year cut. Eleven spots remain open, though some are more available than others. Caroline Marks is locked in at No. 7, meaning only three more women can be guaranteed to surf in the back half of the season.

The comp will most likely go on hold for a few days and before getting huge on Tuesday. It will either be massive Main Break (potentially double overhead) or, if stars and tide and swell and everything align, a peak into The Box. It’s a high bar to meet, as there are many logistical hoops to jump through to make that happen, and the WSL wants to ensure conditions are good the entire day, which is not always a sure thing at that slab. But still, it’s possible we could see the first heats run at The Box since 2019. Fingers crossed.

Western Australia Margaret River Pro Men’s Opening Round Results: 

HEAT 1: Connor O’Leary (JPN) 15.80 DEF. Filipe Toledo (BRA) 15.10, Imaikalani deVault (HAW) 14.43

HEAT 2: Matthew McGillivray (RSA) 14.33 DEF. Ethan Ewing (AUS) 13.77, Ryan Callinan (AUS) 13.10

HEAT 3: Kanoa Igarashi (JPN) 14.26 DEF. Alan Cleland (MEX) 14.17, Edgard Groggia (BRA) 9.80

HEAT 4: Joao Chianca (BRA) 16.00 DEF. Jordy Smith (RSA) 12.87, Mikey McDonagh (AUS) 11.47

HEAT 5: Liam O’Brien (AUS) 15.33 DEF. Yago Dora (BRA) 12.73, Winter Vincent (AUS) 9.40

HEAT 6: Italo Ferreira (BRA) 14.10 DEF. George Pittar (AUS) 10.33, Jacob Willcox (AUS) 5.00

HEAT 7: Jack Robinson (AUS) 15.56 DEF. Marco Mignot (FRA) 12.36, Ian Gentil (HAW) 11.33

HEAT 8: Cole Houshmand (USA) 16.43 DEF. Samuel Pupo (BRA) 16.23, Barron Mamiya (HAW) 11.26

HEAT 9: Ian Gouveia (BRA) 13.23 DEF. Miguel Pupo (BRA) 13.13, Alejo Muniz (BRA) 11.44

HEAT 10: Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA) 13.07 DEF. Griffin Colapinto (USA) 11.80, Crosby Colapinto (USA) 9.63

HEAT 11: Joel Vaughan (AUS) 9.16 DEF. Rio Waida (INA) 8.33, Deivid Silva (BRA) 7.33

HEAT 12: Jake Marshall (USA) 14.90 DEF. Jackson Bunch (HAW) 13.53, Seth Moniz (HAW) 10.34

Western Australia Margaret River Pro Women’s Opening Round Results: 

HEAT 1: Sawyer Lindblad (USA) 11.00 DEF. Molly Picklum (AUS) 10.20, Nadia Erostarbe (ESP) 7.90

HEAT 2: Bronte Macaulay (AUS) 13.13 DEF. Caitlin Simmers (USA) 12.33, Lakey Peterson (USA) 9.03

HEAT 3: Gabriela Bryan (HAW) 15.00 DEF. Vahine Fierro (FRA) 14.83, Willow Hardy (AUS) 8.66

HEAT 4: Luana Silva (BRA) 13.77 DEF. Isabella Nichols (AUS) 8.90, Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 8.67

HEAT 5: Tyler Wright (AUS) 11.37 DEF. Brisa Hennessy (CRC) 10.54, Erin Brooks (CAN) 8.00

HEAT 6: Caroline Marks (USA) 12.50 DEF. Bella Kenworthy (USA) 9.60, Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) 8.34

Western Australia Margaret River Pro Men’s Elimination Round Matchups:

HEAT 1: Barron Mamiya (HAW) vs. Ryan Callinan (AUS) vs. Jacob Willcox (AUS)

HEAT 2: Seth Moniz (HAW) vs. Imaikalani deVault (HAW) vs. Winter Vincent (AUS)

HEAT 3: Alejo Muniz (BRA) vs. Ian Gentil (HAW) vs. Mikey McDonagh (AUS)

HEAT 4: Deivid Silva (BRA) vs. Crosby Colapinto (USA) vs. Edgard Groggia (BRA)

Western Australia Margaret River Pro Women’s Elimination Round Matchups:

HEAT 1: Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) vs. Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) vs. Willow Hardy (AUS)

HEAT 2: Erin Brooks (CAN) vs. Lakey Peterson (USA) vs. Nadia Erostarbe (ESP)