SURF SCENE:

NORTH Stradbroke's Ethan Ewing is Australia's next surfing super star!

Making the finals of the US Open at Huntington Beach California has been Ethan's biggest contest result to date in what has been a remarkable year for the North Straddie youngster.

Ewing has completely dominated the Australian Pro junior circuit and captured a QS open win at Burleigh earlier this year.

As Joe Turpel, WSL commentator says, "Ethan is so cool under pressure, keeps it simple and stays focused”.

These are the necessary ingredients for a young hopeful to graduate to the big time.

Already in the top five of the World Qualifying series for next year's World Tour, the 17-year-old has been on a stellar rise to the top following in the big footsteps of North Stradbroke Island's first WT Pro Bede Durbidge.

His club, the Point Lookout Boardriders of which he is very much part of the A-Team, has been constantly applauding his efforts with great rigour at each event.

The results have just kept coming and there's still the rest of the year including the ultimate test in Hawaii.

However, the hard work has now been done by qualifying for next year's WSL World Tour. Ethan Ewing has an incredibly bright future not seen since the early days of Mick Fanning and Joel Parkinson. Both Mick and Joel dominated their respective pro junior days much like Ewing is doing right now. In many ways he is the culmination of both styles; fast, flowing and capable of radical moves.

Meanwhile, the women's world title continues to be a see-saw affair between California's Courtney Conlogue and Australia's Tyler Wright.

A quarter final exit for Conlogue and semi-final exit for Wright only sees daylight separating these two combatants of world women surfing. Both have come so close to world titles denied to them by Hawaii's Carissa Moore and our very own Stephanie Gilmore.

Both former world champs were eliminated at Huntington with Moore exiting in the round 5 in a surprise defeat by the Sunshine Coast's Keely Andrews. Steph faired a little better by reaching the quarter finals.

Gilmore has yet to produce that killer form so far this year to mount a world title challenge.

The six-time world champ would have been badly frustrated by the lack of decent waves at Huntington Beach and will be looking forward to a big result, with four more events to go.

Trestles in California is next, followed by the beach breaks of Portugal and France. Maybe at the end of the year, a win at Honolua Bay, Maui will keep the home fires burning.

Congrats to Snapper's latest rising women's talent, Alyssa Lock for winning her first Australian Open women's title and a shot at a World International Surfing Association title for next year.

After claiming a handful of junior titles over the last six months, Lock from Tweed Heads managed to add an Australian title to the mix, taking out the Open Women's division in an all NSW final.

Lock synced her frontside attack with the punchy lefthanders, notching up a 14.00 heat total.

Runner-up Sophia Fulton (Mollymook, NSW) put up a valiant fight but failed to muster up the required 7.26 wave score to take away Lock's lead at McCauleys Beach, Coffs Harbour.

"I'm speechless, this feels amazing. This win will be something I remember for a few years to come,” said Lock.

"All the girls in the final were surfing so well over the course of the final, so it feels incredible to come away with the win.”