The MasterCraft Pro Wakeboard Tour debuted its new format today at Dallas Landing Park in Acworth in front of one of its largest crowds to date. Fans poured in to see the Pro Men and Jr. Pro Men compete in their respective finals, and to witness the excitement of the Pro Tour’s new Main Event.
Between the live music, a stacked six-man pro final, plenty of ROCKSTAR girls, a big-air challenge and a double up contest, fans were treated to an epic wake party, full of action and entertainment.
“We definitely left an impression in Acworth with this new format,” said the current King of Wake, Aaron Rathy. “The fans and riders were all really pumped on how things went down and to see new elements of the sport added to the Pro Tour.”
The Pro Men kicked off the final day of action with their quarterfinal round, where 20 riders hit the water in five heats of four. The quarterfinals cut the competition in half, only advancing the top two riders from each heat onto the semifinals.
The semifinals quickly narrowed down the field of riders to setup the six-man final, but not without an upset. Austin Hair of Tega Cay, South Carolina, beat out four-time X Games gold medalist Danny Harf and former Pro Tour champ Shaun Murray to advance to his first Pro Tour finals appearance.
The finals pinned Hair, Adam Errington, Rusty Malinoski, Phillip Soven, JD Webb and Harley Clifford against each other in a six-man final. In such a stacked final heat, riders couldn’t hold anything back in order to win the first Pro Tour stop of the 2010 season. Aussie Phenom Harley Clifford, the current defending Pro Tour titlist, took that notion to the next level during his final run, landing a handle pass KGB 540 — the first ever in a contest.
Clifford’s impressive run was more than enough to take first place in the Pro Men’s finals and take the lead in the Pro Tour standings. Malinoski and Soven rounded out the Pro Men’s podium, respectively.
“I’m stoked,” said Clifford. “Sticking the KGB 5 and winning the first Pro Tour stop in the same day is just unreal.”
Following the Pro Men’s finals, the Pro Tour went right into the Indmar Double Up contest, where the “Bone-Crusher” Rusty Malinoski was declared the obvious winner after sticking his Toeside 1080.
Chad Sharpe, who is known for his bag of tricks off the kicker, won the Rockstar Energy Drink Big-Air Challenge with his massive Indy Glide. Sharpe and Malinoski each took home a $1,000 for winning their respective events.
In the Jr. Pro Men’s division, riders hit the water in two heats of five for their semifinal round. With only the top two riders from each heat advancing, the field of riders was narrowed down to Freddie Wayne, Kyle Evans, Nick Galotifore and Daniel Powers for the four-man final.
All four rippers threw down some series runs, but Galotifore’s Heel 7 off the double up helped the Orlando native rise above the competition to win his first Pro Tour stop. Powers and Evans rounded out the Jr. Pro Men’s podium, respectively.
“It’s crazy, I can’t believe I took first place,” said Galotifore. “I just laid down my run, stuck my Heel 7, and it paid off. I’m stoked!”
With finals wrapped up in Acworth, the MasterCraft Pro Wakeboard Tour will now head to Fort Worth, Tex., on June 10-12. Additional venues for the 2010 season include Elizabethtown, Ky., Colorado Springs, Colo. and Knoxville, Tenn.
To catch all the high-flying, rail-sliding, water-sports action of the Acworth Pro Tour stop on television, tune in to FUEL TV on July 20 at 8 p.m. EST.
Acworth Pro Wakeboard Tour Results:
Pro Men – Finals: Heat #1
1. Harley Clifford 93.33
2. Rusty Malinoski 88.33
3. Phillip Soven 78.33
4. JD Webb 73.33
5. Austin Hair 65.00
6. Adam Errington 50.00
Jr. Pro Men – Finals: Heat #1
1. Nick Galotifore 92.50
2. Daniel Powers 86.25
3. Kyle Evans 81.75
4. Freddie Wayne 79.50
Pro Men – Semifinals: Heat #1
1. Rusty Malinoski 83.33
2. Phillip Soven 80.00
3. Adam Errington 70.00
4. Danny Burnstein 60.00
5. Jim LaRiche 58.33
Pro Men – Semifinals: Heat #2
1. Harley Clifford 75.00
2. JD Webb 60.00
3. Austin Hair 48.33
4. Shaun Murray 33.33
5. Danny Harf 28.33
Jr. Pro Men – Semifinals: Heat #1
1. Nick Galotifore 93.00
2. Daniel Powers 92.25
3. Ryleigh Pfitzner 78.50
4. John Jeffries 70.25
5. Pierce Homsey 66.00
Jr. Pro Men – Semifinals: Heat #2
1. Kyle Evans 92.25
2. Freddie Wayne 83.50
3. Raphael Derome 79.50
4. Steel Lafferty 79.25
5. Josh Twelker 52.00
Pro Men – Quarterfinals: Heat #1
1. Danny Harf 70.83
2. Jim LaRiche 70.00
3. Josh Palma 50.00
4. Kyle Rattray 28.33
Pro Men – Quarterfinals: Heat #2
1. Rusty Malinoski 81.67
2. Adam Errington 76.67
3. Danny Thollander 71.76
4. Nick Jones 50.00
Pro Men – Quarterfinals: Heat #3
1. Austin Hair 76.67
2. JD Webb 66.67
3. Erik Ruck 48.33
4. Andrew Adkison 33.33
Pro Men – Quarterfinals: Heat #4
1. Phillip Soven 76.67
2. Danny Burnstein 55.00
3. Chad Sharpe 46.67
4. Shawn Watson 38.33
Pro Men – Quarterfinals: Heat #5
1. Harley Clifford 85.00
2. Shaun Murray 73.33
3. Aaron Rathy 70.00
4. Phillip Aslinger 59.33
