South African surfer Jordy Smith rises at sunset

Jordy Smith procured his badge of honor Sunday at Sunset Beach.

The South African surfer with the free-flowing, powerful style came to Oahu’s North Shore this winter ranked No. 3 in the world. Good stuff, but the career report card showed a big fat zero when it came to wins in Hawaii, the place where you want to be displaying your Sunday-best rides if you want to have your name mentioned in the same breath as the luminaries of the sport.

Smith absolutely killed it at pumping 10-foot Sunset all day long and was rewarded with the title of Vans World Cup of Surfing champion. Now, the 28-year-old will try to keep the flow going into the season-ending Billabong Pipe Masters, the unquestioned pinnacle of World Surf League events where he also has a shot at the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing championship.

“It feels amazing to win,” Smith said. “I’ve made a couple of finals before (in Hawaii). Got second. Got fourth. Was really happy to make the win and I’m pumped up. Winning in Hawaii is a really big feat, ya know. Not only is it amazing to win, but to get it against the amount of guys that you have to go through with the amount of experience that they have, you pretty much have to put your best foot forward.”

Smith’s spot on next year’s world tour was never in doubt, like it was for the three competitors he faced in Sunday’s four-man final.

Portugal’s Frederico Morais, who placed second behind Smith on Sunday, came to Hawaii for the Triple Crown near the cut line of qualifying for next year’s tour. The worries for the 24-year-old are over. With his effort at Sunset, he is now third on the World Qualifying Series (the minor league of the WSL), a placing which elevates him to the 2017 world tour.

“Qualfiying (for the tour) was my main goal coming into the Triple Crown,” he said. “I knew it was going to be a hard day today. I’m stoked with my second place. It was a good, close heat and I’m stoked with my performance.”

Morais has another big thing going for him. Thanks to his second-place finish to 2016 world champion John John Florence in the first leg of the Triple Crown — the Hawaiian Pro at Alii Beach Park in Haleiwa last month — Morais leads the Triple Crown standings with one event to go — the Billabong Pipe Masters at Ehukai Beach, Dec. 8-20.

In Sunday’s final, Smith’s two waves of 8.73 and 6.33 gave him 15.06 (out of a possible 20.00) to edge Morais, who struck with an 8.23 and a 5.87 for a 14.10 total.

With 20 seconds to go, Morais caught one last wave and delivered a solid maneuver before the wave petered out. It wasn’t enough.

“Yeah, it was a good wave,” Morais said. “My last turn could have been better. But all good. I didn’t find the wave to get the score, but I qualified (for the ‘17 tour) and that was my main goal.”

Already holding the lead, Smith got up and riding with one second left and actually got pitted before falling on a wave that had no bearing on the outcome.

Torrey Meister of the Big Island, who started at Sunset 49th on the WQS, was flirting with jumping all the way into qualification for next year’s tour. He superbly advanced all the way to Sunday’s final, where he finished third.

“It was a huge day for me,” said Meister, who calls Banyans in Kailua-Kona his home break. “I woke up this morning feeling good. I was surprised with how good the waves were. Everyone was expecting it to be smaller and it ended up being big. Besides the last heat, everything was going my way out there. Everybody was saying if I won I could qualify, but (lots of others) did real well so even if I won I wouldn’t have qualified. Jordy just surfed insane. He was on all the right waves and he is always a huge threat no matter where you are in the world, but especially out here. His surfing really suits Sunset.”

Southern California’s Tanner Gudauskas, 28, finished last in the four-man final of the WQS’s final stop.

The 24-year-old Florence and 11-time world champion Kelly Slater, 44, are both still in the hunt for a third Triple Crown title, but both were eliminated early Sunday (Florence in the fourth round and Slater in the semifinals). Florence captured the Triple Crown in 2011 and 2013, Slater in 1995 and 1998.

Smith can still get that Triple Crown title to add to his Hawaii haul with a solid finish at Pipe, the last event of the WSL world tour.

“Pipeline would be amazing (to win),” he said. “I’ve definitely got to get some practice out there training hard (before the Dec. 8 waiting period starts). I think if I can do that, I’ll have my best opportunity.”

And what about a world title someday, since there are only two spots (No. 1 Florence and No. 2 Gabriel Medina of Brazil) in front of him?

“Absolutely,” Smith said with a huge smile. “Always looking to gain ground. First and foremost, I’m looking to enjoy my surfing and … .”

After a pause for effect, he added: “Get barreled.”