Held as part of the Port Stephens Toyota NSW Pro, the cadet cup saw 50 juniors in the under-12, 14 and 16 age categories take part in the two-day contest in tricky one-foot conditions at Birubi Beach.

Whitby-Otto from Newcastle ended his under-16 boys campaign in fourth behind Saxon Reber (Manly), Taj Simon (Port Kembla) and local competitor Mike Clayton-Brown (Corlette).

Clayton-Brown put on a dominant display of giant backside turns to claim the under-16 boys final. 

The 15 year old remained busy during the 20-minute final on Sunday, catching a handful of long tapered walls which allowed him to unleash a barrage of impressive turns. 

As a result, the natural-footer claimed victory with a 16.04 two-wave heat total.

Tinson from Merewether finished the under-14 boys final in a respectable fourth spot behind Xavier Bryce (Manly), Nate Hopkins (Norah Head) and Winter Vincent (Manly).

Following on from his standout performance on Saturday, Vincent put on an impressive display of innovative aerials and turns to take out an exciting under-14 boys final.

Vincent posted three scores in the excellent scale (eight and above) in the final to get the nod and add another accomplishment to his already bulging portfolio of event wins.

The Open Women’s Pro-Am was run alongside the cadet cup at Birubi Beach on Sunday.

Amuro Tsuzuki from Japan, the event’s only international competitor, tore apart all rounds of the competition and claimed first place in the pro-am.

Tsuzuki came up against some stiff competition from Corlette’s Elle Clayton-Brown, Anna Bay’s Jasmine Sampson and Northern Beaches native Lily Macdonald but was able to get the nod thanks to a solid 16.5 two-wave heat total.

In the under-16 girls Charli Hurst from Port Kembla claimed first prize, Cali Barrett from Tweed Heads took out under-14 girls, Bodhi Simon from Port Kembla under-12 girls and Fletcher Kelleher from Freshwater under-12 boys.

The NSW Pro will be launched in Taylors Beach on Wednesday before the World Surf League Qualifying Series, which includes a Women’s QS6000 and Men’s QS1000 rated events, kicks off at Birubi Beach on Thursday.

The NSW Pro is the last QS6000 event of the year. The results will have major implications for athletes seeking promotion to the 2019 Championship Tour.

The 2019 tour will be made up of the top 10 surfers from the CT rankings and the top six from the QS rankings.

There are currently four women who have a shot at qualifying for the 2019 CT that are not already on it: Macy Callaghan (sitting at number 13 in the QS rankings), Brisa Hennessy (10), Holly Wawn (15) and Merewether’s Philippa Anderson (11).

Anderson has missed the qualification cut off for the past seven years in a row but will be looking to change that with a win at Birubi Beach when the NSW Pro returns November 8 to 13.

Open Women Pro-Am

1 – Amuro Tsuzuki (Japan)

2 – Elle Clayton-Brown (Corlette, NSW)

3 – Jasmine Sampson (Anna Bay, NSW)

4 – Lily Macdonald (Freshwater, NSW)

Under-16 Boys

1 – Mike Clayton-Brown (Anna Bay, NSW)

2 – Taj Simon (Port Kembla, NSW)

3 – Saxon Reber (Manly, NSW)

4 – Sunny Whitby-Otto (Newcastle, NSW)

Under-16 Girls

1 – Charli Hurst (Port Kembla, NSW)

2 – Jasmine McCorquodale (Bateau Bay, NSW)

3 – Matilda Taylor (Norah Head, NSW)

4 – Lillian Young (Iluka, NSW)

Under-14 Boys

1 – Winter Vincent (Manly, NSW)

2 – Nate Hopkins (Norah Head, NSW)

3 – Xavier Bryce (Manly, NSW)

4 – Zac Tinson (Merewether, NSW)

Under-14 Girls

1 – Cali Barrett (Tweed Heads, NSW)

2 – Bonnie Hills (Coffs Harbour, NSW)

3 – Zahlia Short (Wollongong, NSW)

4 – Holly Wishart (Werri, NSW)

Under-12 Boys

1 – Fletcher Kelleher (Freshwater, NSW)

2 – Jake Feher (Matraville, NSW)

3 – Sol Gruendling (Queenscliff, NSW)

4 – Jimmi Hill (Boat Harbour, NSW)

Under-12 Girls

1 – Bodhi Simon (Port Kembla, NSW)

2 – Ruby Rockstar Trew (Seaforth, NSW)

3 – Ocea Curtis (Lennox Head, NSW)

4 – Nina Lawson (Scotts Head, NSW)