It's crunch time for Conner Coffin. Sitting at No. 24 on the Jeep Leaderboard, the Santa Barbara rookie needs a result at the MEO Rip Curl Pro in order to make 2017 requalification a reality (only the Top 22 surfers earn at CT slot). He tackled some thick walls at Pico do Fabril during his Round Four heat against Australian rookie Stu Kennedy and top seed Jordy Smith. Despite solid rail surfing, Coffin couldn't match the South African's last-minute heroics.
Conner's Round Five battle may be his toughest yet. He will face the giant-killing Frenchman, Jeremy Flores, who took out World Title contenders Gabriel Medina and Matt Wilkinson earlier in the event.