Growing up in the South African coastal town of Port Elizabeth and seeing her father and older brother surf, it was only a matter of time before Philippa Anderson picked up the sport herself; that time came when she was 10 years old. A family move to Newcastle, Australia, when she was 12, only helped fuel the fire that was burning inside the up-and-comer. That same year, Philippa entered her first contest—the prestigious and highly competitive Rip Curl Grom Search—and took home a second-place trophy driven by the desire to compete with the best at the sport’s highest levels.

While older brother Craig, yes, THAT Craig Anderson, faded from the contest scene and went the free surfing route, Philippa set her sights on competitive greatness and, after having picked up Rip Curl as a main sponsor at age 14, hasn’t looked back.

Over the years, Anderson has put together some impressive results during her time as a WQS warrior. A handful of 2nd and 3rd place finishes, plus a few 1st places, have led her to some wildcard entries in select Women’s Championship Tour events. Most recently, at the Rip Curl Newcastle Cup presented by Corona held at her home break where she finished with an equal 9th losing to 4-time world champion, Carissa Moore.

With competitive surfing beginning to make its comeback after an unprecedented 2020 year, we look forward to seeing what Philippa Anderson will do in the near future—most likely a lot. Considering her bloodline, we reckon she’s going to be just fine.