Garcia, Centeio shine on Day 2 at Haleiwa

Veterans and rookies alike shined through on the second day of the Hawaiian Pro at Haleiwa.

A declining swell and tricky 2- to 4-foot waves helped Hawaii surfers like six-time triple crown champion Sunny Garcia and Haleiwa local Joel Centeio advance to the third day. Centeio, a past champion, used nerves of steel in his heat, waiting 10 minutes to catch his first wave.

It ended up being worth his time, as he hacked into a solid right-hander good for an 8-point ride, and he just continued to build house from there on.

"I feel good, I am super stoked to make that heat because the waves are dropping real fast," Centeio said. "It is really tricky out there, but the game plan for me was to just pick the right waves because there are a whole lot of closeouts out there. I got that 8, then the pressure was kind of off and I just had to look for a back up score."

Centeio credits Garcia as an inspiration for his longevity in surfing the event and the Triple Crown. Garcia made his 29th start in the event on Wednesday, a mark of longevity that won’t be matched anytime soon.

"It is so incredible he has the most incredible record in the Triple Crown ever and he has been doing it since he was 16 or something," Centeio said. "That guy is a freak — when it is legit and overhead you can’t beat that guy’s turn. He won his heat today and it is good to see." Garcia scored 13.37 in his heat to beat Mateia Higuily’s 13.27. Kaito Kino and Ezekiel Lau were the only other Hawaii surfers to win their heats on the second day, but Seth Moniz and Kalani David took second in their heats to advance to the next round.

Tiago Pires of Portugal scored the best ride at 9.60 and Australia’s Ace Buchan had the best set with 17.00.