There were first-time event winners amongst those going back-to-back from the Nationals and two returns to the winners circle for others at the first event of the Billabong Grom Series presented by Oceanbridge completed at Mount Maunganui today.
Raglan’s Van Camenzind and Mount’s own Summer Holmes were two surfers to win their first event events at a national level, Camenzind actually making his first ever final.
Ffeon Clifford and Vitor Bauermann, both of the Mount went back to back after their national titles at Gisborne two weeks ago while Kyra Wallis (Piha) and Alani Morse (Rag) returned to the winners circle this weekend.
With the finals completed, it was Mount Maunganui’s Bay Boardriders Club that took a convincing win over Raglan Point Boardriders with Whangamata Boardriders in third.
The day started out with small clean waves and light offshore winds through until lunch time when the sea breeze built and made the waves challenging to surf along with the fading swell.
Van Camenzind surfed to a 10.17 point heat total to best Harrison Biddle (WGM) for the win. With time counting down, Biddle got his chance to take a win but fell just short with a 3.27 chasing a 3.5.
“Yeah it feels good, yeah to finally tick it off I guess” said Camenzind. “I feel like I have improved a bit especially being in the Raglan Surf Academy and getting coaching and support from Deane and Larry, yeah it feels good. Its awesome to win one,” he added.
Leonnox Jennings (Whiti) finished in third place ahead of Tyler Stenzel (Mount) in fourth.
Kyra Wallis (Piha) returned to form with a win in the Under 18 Girls Division with less than a point separating first from third.
“It was hard out there with the wind and the big hole in the middle but I am happy to get the win,” said Wallis. “I’m not sure there is much difference between this win and a poor result at the Nationals, it really comes down to luck and getting the right waves, maybe being a bit more busy in my heats too,” she added.
New Zealand Open Women’s Champion Maya Mateja (Rag) finished in second place ahead of Poppy Arkle (Piha) in third and Izzy Evans (Mnt) in fourth.
The Under 16 Boys Division saw the two Mount surfers triumph over the two Raglan surfers, Vitor Bauermann and Sol Fritchley making the most of the small wind affected conditions. Vitor eventually stormed to a 14.67 point heat total for the win over Sol Fritchley on 11.27. Luca Thompson finished in third place ahead of Xander Banks in fourth.
Alani Morse (Rag) and Lola Groube (Pau) continued their battle in the Under 16s, this time Alani getting the nod after bravely letting Lola go on a wave during a tense paddle battle. Requiring a 5.17, Lola came up short with a 4.9 and had to settle for second with Jade Nias Phillips (Ahipara) finishing in third and Ella Rebolledo – Withers (Piha) finishing in fourth.
Ffeon Clifford (Mnt) made it two from two for summer in the Under 14 Boys Division. After taking out the National Championships, he backed it up this weekend with a win at home. His high score of 6.73 points was what pushed him clear of his opponents with Jimmy Wernham (Rag) in second and Louis Macquet (Mnt) in third. Arlo Scorringe (Mnt) rounded out the final finishing in fourth place.
Summer Holmes (Mnt) claimed her first title in the Under 14 Girls Division after a runner up finish at the Primary School Champs at the end of last year and a finals berth at the National Championships. Today she led the final from start to end surfing to a 12.60 point heat total to beat her mates, Millie Dyck, Savannah Dawes and Alba Clifford who finished second through fourth.
Full results can be viewed via Live Heats.
Season rankings for the New Zealand Grom Series can be found on Live Heats.
The first event of the series played host to 129 participants from Ahipara through to Dunedin.
The event marks the second of eight national events around the New Zealand coastline as part of the Surfing New Zealand Epic Break summer campaign showcasing surfing talent and celebrating the surfing community between January and April.
The Billabong Grom Series presented by Oceanbridge now heads to Whangamata (14-15th February) before finishing at Piha Beach on February 28th – March 1st.
The 2026 NZ Grom Series comprises over 10 events nationwide with participants best four events counting toward their national ranking.
Event Dates
Event 2 – 14th-15th February 2026, Whangamata Beach.
Event 3 – 28th February – 1st March 2026, Piha Beach, Auckland.
Further Information
For further information on the 2026 Billabong Grom Series presented by Oceanbridge please contact Surfing New Zealand’s Gavin Bisman – 027-446-4174 / gavin.bisman@surfingnz.co.nz
Imagery
High resolution action images of the surfing at all events on the Billabong Grom Series will be available to media free of charge. Please contact Ben Kennings for further details – ben.kennings@surfingnz.co.nz
Partners
Generous support from Billabong and presenting sponsors Oceanbridge has made this series possible for 21 years. Thank you to Bay Boardriders for hosting event one of the series.
Follow the event
Follow the action via social media @billabong on Instagram and @surfingnz across Facebook, Instagram, X and TikTok.
Follow the series hashtag – #BillabongGromSeries #EpicBreak
Surfing New Zealand is proudly partnered by:
Sport New Zealand
ACC
Sun Bum
Kiwi Holiday Insurance
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