This article ran in the November 26 issue of the Honolulu Advertiser, two days after the 1974 Smirnoff Pro prelims were held. The Smirnoff that year, for the first time, had included female pros along with the male pros; each of the prelim heats had a woman surfer, and the one with the highest point total for the heat was awarded $1,000.

The six girls who failed to advance to the semifinals of the $11,100 Smirnoff Pro-Am Surfing Classic weren’t the only thing wiped out Sunday in the prelims at Sunset Beach.

The idea of women's lib in surfing was, too.

The second round of competition had been slated for yesterday but was postponed because of small waves. It's scheduled to be held today

Meanwhile, the girls were beached for the duration, and the rest of the way they can watch the men in action.

"My biggest compliment would be somebody saying that I surfed like a guy," said Rella Sunn, a local Chinese Hawaiian wahine who caught two waves. Jeannie Chesser, a Florida girl who has lived in Hawaii for several years, was quick to agree. "I don’t think any chick can say she's surfing against guys. We all went for the honor of being invited"

The 25-year-old Miss Chesser proved her first point by failing to ride any waves at all—like fellow (Ms?) surfer Blanche Benson—in the shifting eight-to-10 foot swells Sunday.

It was surf considered too small for the men, yet too big for the women.

“I get scared in anything around eight feet," said 18-year-old Lynne Boyer, who caught one wave Sunday, but is considered radical on anything four feet and under.

She also expressed the most obvious concern of the women: being strong enough to hold your breath and fight your way back up to the surface after you take a wipe-out. "It's a matter of strength and the men being more experienced."

The inexperience was obvious before the meet, as the entire female entourage was clustered around Mike Purpus (who later wiped out himself and hit his head on the bottom) as he explained the idiosyncrasies of the Sunset break.

In other words, the girls had not even practiced there.

“Laura's the only girl who knew anything about Sunset," added Miss Sunn, whose rides were on little waves that came up as the swells shifted from West to North. She was talking about Laura Blears Ching, the women’s winner who took home $1,000 for two rides and 30 minutes' work.

Mrs. Ching, considered the most competitive by the girls themselves and the most renowned female surfer, leaves for the Astrodome next month to take part in an ABC-televised “woman's superstar" playoff.

But she did lose to her brother Jim in their heat Sunday. That brought up the conflict regarding the sexes at the Smirnoff.

“The men liked and didn't like the idea of women surfing with them," a competitor said. "It's good because that's one less man to beat in your heat. But it’s bad because taking six women means you eliminate six men, who are better surfers.”

Meet director Fred Hemmings Jr. had hoped that the smaller waves might help the women, but the general feeling after the prelims was that the girls were better off in their own contest.

Plus there had been indecision about whom to ask—girls who are hot surfers at smaller-wave places like Chun's or Ala Moana, or girls who supposedly can handle the bigger stuff?

Whatever the outcome, the girls have come a long way—a long way, indeed, since Jeannie Chesser won her first contest in 1967 in Florida, "by being the only girl who could turn."

"GALS MS. THEIR MARK IN SMIRNOFF," CHIP DAVEY, HONOLULU ADVERTISER (1974)

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