A-frame

Aaberg, Denny

Aaberg, Kemp

Abberton, Koby

Abbruzzi, Sid

Abellira, Reno

Abubo, Megan

academia and surfing

Adler, Tom

advertising and surfing

Aeder, Erik

aerial

Aguerre, Fernando

Aichner, Scott

Aikau, Clyde

Aikau, Eddie

Aipa, Ben

air-drop

airbrush

Airshow

Ala Moana

Alabama

alaia board

Alaska

alcohol and surfing

Alexander, Kala

Allen, Chuck

Alms, Paige

aloha shirt

Alter, Hobie

Alvarez, Pepe

Ancell, Kevin

Andaman Islands

Andersen, Lisa

Anderson, Craig

Anderson, Simon

Andino, Kolohe

Angel, Jose

angle

Angola

Angourie

Antarctica

Apocalypse Now

Arabian Sea

Aragon, Janice

Arakawa, Eric

Archbold, Matt

Arena, Eduardo

Ashton, Juan

Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP)

Atlantic Ocean

August, Robert

Aurness, Rolf

Auster, Ken

Australia

Avalon, Frankie

Azores

backdoor

backside

backside attack, Pipeline

backwash

bail out

Bain, Rob

Baja California

Baker, Bernie

Baker, Grant “Twiggy”

Baker, Tim

Bali

Ball, John “Doc”

Ballard, Bill

Ballard, Rochelle

balsa

Baltic Sea

Banks, Jim

Barbados

Barilotti, Steve

Barland, Michel

Barreda, Sergio “Gordo”

Barry, Michael

Bartholomew, Wayne

Baxter, Jackie

Bay of Bengal

Beach Boys, The

Beacham, Debbie

beachboys

beachbreak

Beachcomber Bills Grand Prix

Beachley, Layne

beavertail

Becker, Phil

Bedford-Brown, Stuart

Belgium

Bells Beach

Bendall, Ma and Pa

Bennett, Barry

Benson, Becky

Benson, Linda

Bermuda

Bertlemann, Larry

Beschen, Shane

Raucous pro surf competition and beach festival held each summer since 1994 on the south side of Huntington Beach Pier, in California. "If you want to see surfing at its most beautiful, go someplace remote like Indonesia," 

 writer Mark Lukach said of the contest in 2013. "If you want to see surfing at its most dangerous, head to Mavericks. But if you want to see surfing at its most ugly and mass-consumed, head to the U.S. Open of Surfing in Huntington."

The debut US Open had a $130,000 combined prize purse for men’s and women’s, and was included on the World Championship Tour (WCT), one week after the Op Pro, which had just been downgraded to a World Qualifying Series (WQS) event. Shane Beschen defeated reining world champion Kelly Slater in the men's final; Lisa Andersen edged fellow Floridian Frieda Zamba to take the women’s title.

The men's division of the US Open was dropped from the WCT schedule after the 1996 event, but remained a high-rated qualifying event. For the women, the US Open was also dropped from the WCT after 1996, then reinstated five years later; in 2011 and 2012, it was the final event on the women's WCT schedule. A longboard competition has been part of the US Open since the beginning; a junior men's division was added in 1996, but held sporadically over the years. Bodyboarding and junior women's have also been on the event schedule. In conjunction with the US Open, the Huntington Beach Surfing Walk of Fame and the Surfers Hall of Fame at Huntington Beach present their newest inductees.

The lengthy US Open festival (nine days in 2017), like the Op Pro before it, has been a loud, bawdy celebration of surf "beach lifestyle" consumerism, complete with free concerts, dozens of retail stalls, and thousands of chattering, autograph-obsessed, frequently beer-soaked fans. NBC estimated that a half-million people attended than 2016 Open, and in 2012 the 

declared the US Open to be the “largest action sports event in the world."

US Open sponsors over the years include G-Shock, Clarion, Shockwave, Panasonic, Honda, Boost Mobile, O'Neill, Bluetorch, IMG, Nike, Vans, and Hurley. Good weather, rather than good surf, has always been the primary concern for event backers; mid-summer waves in Huntington tend to be small and weak, with a dependable onshore wind kicking up in late morning.

In 2013, the US Open drew national attention when, just after the event ended, rioting broke out on the streets just behind the contest area. Portable toilets were tipped over, street signs were torn down, and at least one local store was vandalized. Police used tear gas to clear the crowd, and eight people were arrested. This, too, was an echo of the Op Pro, when rioting ended the contest in 1986.

US Open winners (Men's, Women's, Longboard, Junior Men's) are as follows:

1994: Shane Beschen, Lisa Andersen, Colin McPhillips, (no junior's)

1995: Rob Machado, Neridah Falconer, Joel Tudor, Andy Irons

1996: Kelly Slater, Layne Beachley, Joel Tudor, Andy Irons

1997: Beau Emerton, Lisa Andersen, Joel Tudor, Andy Irons

1998: Andy Irons, Tita Tavares, Joel Tudor, (no junior's)

1999: Shea Lopez, Keala Kennelly, Joel Tudor, Travis Logie

2000: Sunny Garcia, Tita Tavares, Joel Tudor, Paulo Moura

2001: Rob Machado, Pauline Menczer, Josh Baxter, Bobby Martinez

2002: Kalani Robb, Pauline Menczer, Joel Tudor, Kekoa Bacalso

2003: Cory Lopez, Chelsea Georgeson, Taylor Jensen, Kekoa Bacalso

2004: Taj Burrow, Chelsea Georgeson, Brendan White, Adriano de Souza

2005: Andy Irons, Julia Christian, Joel Tudor, Hank Gaskell

2006: Rob Machado, Sofia Mulanovich, Dodger Kremel, Ben Dunn

2007: C.J. Hobgood, Stephanie Gilmore, Colin McPhillips, Tonino Benson

2008: Nathaniel Curran, Malia Manuel, Taylor Jensen, Tanner Gudauskas

2009: Brett Simpson, Courtney Conlogue, (no longboard), Kai Barger

2010: Brett Simpson, Carissa Moore, Stephen Mangiacapre, Evan Geiselman

2011: Kelly Slater, Sally Fitzgibbons, Joel Tudor, Filipe Toloedo

2012: Julian Wilson, Lakey Peterson, Joel Tudor, Conner Coffin

2013: Alejo Muniz, Carissa Moore, Justin Quintal, Conner Coffin

2014: Filipe Toledo, Tyler Wright, Justin Quintal, Matt Banting

2015: Hiroto Ohhara, Johanne Defay, Justin Quintal Griffin Colapinto

2016: Filipe Toledo, Tatiana Weston-Webb, Justin Quintal, Luis Diaz

US Open of Surfing

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Encyclopedia of Surfing

History of Surfing

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Features

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Encyclopedia of Surfing

History of Surfing

Interviews

Features

Videos