Elin Tawharu wins Grom title on her home beach

TOP FORM: Mount Maunganui surfer Elin Tawharu won the Billabong Grom Series Under-17 title off Tay Street on the weekend. PHOTO: Surf2Surf.com

The Raglan trio of Taylor Hutchison, Indica Ratima and Brie Bennett claimed big wins at the final event of the Billabong Grom Series held at Mount Maunganui over the weekend.

Hutchison and Ratima won their respective Under-20 divisions while Bennett claimed the Under-14 Girls division in less than desirable conditions as the coastline took a storm lashing.

The surf remained around the 1.5m mark all Sunday but it was the strong onshore winds that caused the average surface conditions.

Mount Maunganui's Elin Tawharu enjoyed her second win of the series in the Under-17 Girls division in front of delighted friends and whanau. She posted an 11.10 point heat total in the final to eclipse fellow Mount Maunganui surfer Tiana-Breeze De Mooij who had her second runner-up finish of the series.

The third Mount Maunganui surfer in the final, Kea Smith, could not find a decent second scoring ride after surfing to the final-high 7.83 point ride for one massive turn. Smith finished in third place with Aimee Brown (Grt Barrier) in fourth.

Both Hutchison and Bennett claimed series titles as a result of their wins.

The final of the Under 20 Boys division saw Hutchison use his experience to outpoint Sandy Bay surfer Manu Scott-Arrieta who finished runner up.

Hutchison, a New Zealand representative, posted a 15.83 point heat total for the win compared with Scott-Arrieta's 12.87. Placing third in the final was Jonas Tawharu (Mount Maunganui) with Harry Macintosh (Waiheke) fourth.

Ratima won her first national level event with her win. The goofy foot surfer has shown glimpses of form over the past few years but has never managed to put it all together in a final until Sunday.

After an event of upsets in the Under 17 Boys division, Christchurch surfer Conor McLennan claimed his first national win. With the absence of Elliot Brown and the early demise of Mount Maunganui surfers Dylan Preston and William Van Der Beek, McLennan was left chasing the title alongside Caleb Cutmore and Shane Kraus (Auck).

The final was decided in the last minute when McLennan surfed to a seven point ride with two big backhand turns to jump ahead of Cutmore. Cutmore finished in second ahead of Kraus with Luke Griffin (Mount Maunganui) in fourth.

Tom Butland (Oakura) defended his Billabong Grom Series lead in the Under-14 division after he put in a complete finals performance to post 13.73 out of 20. It was Butland's first win in a year and after winning the final and the Billabong Grom Series, he moves up to third overall on the Grom Series.

James Ririnui (Mount Maunganui) was second in the final and continued his good form, followed by Tom Robinson (Whangarei) in third and Kora Cooper (Rag) in fourth.

Raglan's Brie Bennett got the edge over Ariana Shewry (Oakura) in the Under-14 Girls division to win the final and the series. Daizee Rawles (Gis) was third with Natasha Gouldsbury (Levin) in fourth.

Billabong Grom Series by Oceanbridge Winners
Under 20 Boys - Taylor Hutchison (Rag)
Under 20 Girls - Claudia Fraser (Piha)
Under 17 Boys - Connor McLennan (Chch)
Under 17 Girls - Elin Tawharu (Mount Maunganui)
Under 14 Boys - Tom Butland (Oakura)
Under 14 Girls - Brie Bennett (Rag)