Kelly Slater won the U.S. Open of Surfing on Sunday, steamrolling Australia’s Yadin Nicol in the final and taking his first title at the iconic Huntington Beach event since winning in 1996. Slater’s victory, which was all but uncontested, confirms his legacy as history’s greatest competitive surfer. At age 39, Slater while Nicol struggled to find a wave. “I guess Yadin wanted me to win because he didn’t catch any waves,” Slater joked. “I was just really frustrated for him.” Slater has won ten world titles since 1992 and currently sits in sixth place in the ASP rankings after skipping the tour’s last event in Jeffrey’s Bay, South Africa. On the women’s side, Sally Fitzgibbons beat Santa Barbara native Lakey Peterson to take first. Peterson, 16, won the Juniors division earlier in the week and en route to the final.
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