Newcastle’s Ryan Callinan had a confidence-boosting heat win in the men’s Qualifying Series event.
He posted an impressive 8.6 on his first wave, then waited until his last to secure victory.
The 24-year-old needs a solid result to increase his chances of re-qualifying for the world tour.
“I’m really enjoying my year even though the CT hasn’t gone to plan … a good score here adds to my total which is really good.”
He’ll face Brazil’s Italo Ferreira and Hawaii’s Keanu Asing and Torrey Meister in round three.
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