Gerry Lopez, Pancho Sullivan, Shawn Briley and Ross Williams, judges of the Surfline winter wave contest, have chosen the 10 waves that they believe were the best of the season. One of these will win the $25.000 grand prize and go down in history in the tournament that this year crowns its ninth winner.

There will also be awards for the new talent, the best performance of the season and the best drop (each of these categories will receive 5000 dollars).

In a note published on Surfline it is explained that the judges will take the following criteria to determine the winner:

– Wave size (25%)
– Degree of difficulty (25%)
– Style (25%)
– General “heaviness” factor (25%).

Japan's Keito Matsuoka has positioned himself as the favorite to win the Backdoor Shootout with his barrel at Pipe. Waves from Mark Healey, Cam Richards and Tyler Newton are giving him a boost.

The winner will be announced on March 28 at an event in Honolulu, Hawaii.

These are the previous winners of the winter wave:
Nathan Florence (2018)
Koa Rothman (2017)
Mikey O'Shaughnessey (2016)
Jamie O'Brien (2015)
Kelly Slater (2014)
Ricardo Dos Santos (2013)
Reef McIntosh (2012)
Kalani Chapman (2011).

The top 10 are below: