At the 2017 Margaret River Pro, John John Florence threw down four 19-point heats in a statement-making win. Between his Quarterfinal, Semifinal and Final heats, he amassed a three-heat total of 56.34 out of a possible 60.
After his incredible run in 2016 where he won the Eddie, The Triple Crown, and the World Title, he certainly deserved to exhale but instead went full throttle in Margs.
At the time, nobody on Tour was more comfortable in open-ocean lineups than Florence. His mastery of the lumpy and bumpy, the rips and rivers, the deep stuff, it's untouchable. Main Break's moodiness was giving most surfers a headache. Not Florence. It was a giant playground for him, with an uncanny resemblance to Pupukea rights, the wave in his backyard.
His surfing at Main Break was pure artistry. The twisting and torquing, the snapping and carving, it was simply beyond anything else we've seen, not just from Florence, but from anyone, ever.
And now, as the Championship Tour gets ready to return to Australia, Florence sits atop the leaderboard and intent on chasing down his third World Title. And Margaret River is going to factor into it in a huge way.
John John Florence wetting his rail in West Oz enroute to his 2017 victory at Margaret River. - WSL / Matt Dunbar