Byrne finishes fifth but wins 10k bonus prize

Nat Young of Santa Cruz edged out Chris Waring of Seal Beach on Sunday to win the Assn. of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Qualifying Series (WQS) 4-Star O’Neill Cold Water Classic in great 4-to-6-foot surf in front of his home crowd at Steamer Lane in Santa Cruz.

Micah Byrne of Huntington Beach reached the semifinal round of the competition before being eliminated, but he did win the Macy’s CA Trifecta Surf Series based on his performance in Santa Cruz. His equal fifth-place finish gave him enough points — combined with points from the recent 6.0 Lowers Pro and Oakley Newport Beach Pro contests — to win the $10,000 bonus prize for the three-event series.

Huntington’s Shaun Ward, currently ranked No. 3 in the ASP North America WQS ratings, advanced to the quarterfinals, where he finished the heat in third place. Ward ended up with an equal ninth-place finish.

At the Oakley Pro Junior ASP North America Championships, Huntington Beach’s Bruno Rodrigues finished in third place. Rodrigues needed to win the event in order to qualify for the upcoming Billabong ASP World Junior Championships.

— Mike Sciacca