Oakley Brings Iconic Event Back to Lower Trestles

“Oakley has a long history at Lower Trestles and we’re excited to be back at this esteemed surf break to host some of the world’s best surfers in our own backyard,” said Cuan Petersen, Director of Global Sports Marketing, Oakley. “Lowers is a perfect canvas for innovative, high-performance surfing, which makes for an ideal competitive venue. And while it can be a picturesque wave, it’s a difficult one to master. It’s definitely a place that differentiates the good from the great. We’re looking forward to kicking off the competition at the 2015 Oakley Lowers Pro.”

This surf contest originally started in the early 1980's, and has become one of the favorite spots to surf for the worlds top talent to surf in Southern California.  Both seasoned pros and up-and-comers froth for the chance to surf at the elite wave showcasing their most progressive maneuvers and keeping the crowd a gasp and on their feet heat after heat. The best surfers in the world will be pushing the boundaries of surfing to new limits.

This year a win at the Oakley Lowers Pro is equivalent in ratings points (10,000) to a win at a WSL Championship Tour (CT) event making it likely to see many of the CT’s Elite 34 in the line up. Past winners have included: Tom Curren (1982, 2001), Christian Fletcher (1989), 11-time World Champion Kelly Slater (1990), Rob Machado (1998), the late, great three-time World Champion Andy Irons (2004), and most recently, the Brazilian invasion of Miguel Pupo (2011) and current World Champion Gabriel Medina (2012).

A narrow field of 96 athletes from around the globe, plus two qualifiers from an eight-man trial, will vie for the $250,000 prize purse and WSL ratings points, the most possible in a single qualifying event, this year. The line up will be announced soon.