Redemption as Top 17 Take on Surf City

If Round 1 at the Vans US Open of Surfing saw some titans of the women's Championship Tour go down, Rounds 2 and 3 gave them a chance at redemption.

Round 2, a sudden-death round that pits the second- and third-place finishers from Round 1 against each other, saw a mix of comebacks and tough defeats. Among the surfers who returned to form was Carissa Moore (HAW). After a Round 1 loss to Nikki Van Dijk (AUS), Moore made quick work of her heat against wildcard Chelsea Tuach (BRB). She took her competitive savvy to Round 3, where she was neck and neck with fellow Hawaiian Coco Ho, eventually pulling off a buzzer-beater win.

Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) was another surfer who came back stronger than Day 1. Wearing a protective band and helmet to keep water out of her injured ear, she took down injury replacement Keely Andrew (AUS) in Round 2, and went on to win her Round 3 heat for a direct advance into the Quarterfinals.

Californian Lakey Peterson (USA) came out of the gate firing in Round 3. Peterson won in Huntington Beach in 2012 and looked at home in the building swell with quick drops and powerful hacks, blowing away her competition early. She will go straight to the Quarterfinals.

Several of the women, meanwhile, suffered painful losses. Tyler Wright(AUS), who won the Vans US Open last year, was eliminated in Round 2 by Hawaiian Alessa Quizon (HAW). The boost-happy Silvana Lima (BRA) narrowly earned a win in Round 2, but fell far short of an on-fire Malia Manuel (HAW) in the next round. Lima will get another shot in Round 4.