It didn't take long for the carnage to commence once the elite Samsung Galaxy Champion Tour (CT) crew hit the water at Sunset. CT veterans Adriano de Souza, Filipe Toledo, Ace Buchan, and 2016 World Champ John John Florence did some serious damage in Round Three.
Australian Ace Buchan proved the most lethal, when he took down No. 1 QS surfer Connor O'Leary and Australian CT rookie Ryan Callinan. Although O'Leary's 2017 CT spot is safe, Callinan, who's ranked No. 9, needed a solid result at Sunset to keep his top 10 QS rank intact. Now, his early exit at the Vans World Cup could knock him out of contention, and sitting at No. 36 on the CT, he's in a precarious spot heading into Pipe.
Still, a few CT contenders -- Tanner Gudauskas (QS No. 19) and Frederico Morais (QS No. 10) -- held their ground and broke through in their do-or-die Round Three heat.