Mikey McDonagh has powered to a victory in the final of the Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro. The solidly built natural footer from Lennox head peaked at exactly the right time. Posting two big scores early in the final allowed Mikey to take control of the fixture against last year’s event winner Samuel Pupo. 

Pupo, a recent victim of the CT’s mid-year cut, was arguably the form surfer of the Snapper Rocks event, but when a heavy squall hit mid-way through the final it flattened out the waves and limited his opportunities to strike back from a combination situation.

Meanwhile, McDonagh’s muscular approach played well on a finals day when Snapper tossed up meaty sections and the occasional cylinder. Mikey’s grandfather played Rugby League for the Sydney Roosters and today Mikey attacked the lip with the intensity of a hard-running centre to claim his best career result to date. One snap to carve combo in the final earned McDonagh an 8.60 and had his Lennox Head fan club screaming louder than the crowd who will show up to watch DJ Fish play in Coolangatta tonight.   

McDonagh was greeted with wild celebrations as he hit the beach and the result was made official. As McDonagh’s friends swarmed, commentator Kaipo Guerrero struggled to hustle through the throng for his post-heat interview. Eventually he got there, but the excited Lennox crew were still rattling the glass as they watched their mate deal with the media and try to process the win.

The Challenger series (known affectionately as ‘The Changa’) counts four-out-of six results towards CT qualification, and the 10 000 point win puts McDonagh in a prime position to secure a slot on the 2025 CT. His good friend, George Pittar, is another Australian surfer who is looking solid after making the semis at Snapper and growing his fan-base with a stylish, tall-man act.    

In the women’s event, Texan-born teen prodigy, Erin Brooks, confirmed her reputation as a future world-beater by defeating Luana Silver in the final. Brooks blew the crowd away in the semi-final with a deep backside barrel that spat her onto a Snapper Wall that kept running and invited her to ice the cake with a couple of fully committed turns. It was probably a ten before the big moves but 16-year-old Erin only knows one approach – full throttle. After winning the final Erin, who surfs under the Canadian flag, was off to celebrate by eating Pizza with her friends. One imagines that Mikey McDonagh and his band of Lennox fans had something slightly more raucous in mind.

The quality of the surfing and the waves throughout the Snapper Rocks event provided a clear reminder of why the Coolangatta points belong on the CT. Thankfully, next year they will be. Let’s hope the CT delivers as much entertainment as this event did.