The WSL in NZ – the Egmont Honey Pro – wrap and photos

News supplied by the WSL:

TARANAKI, North Island, New Zealand (Sunday, May 31, 2026) - This weekend, Beatrice Conroy (AUS) and Jack Tyro (NZL), two first-time victors, won the Egmont Honey Pro Longboard Qualifying Series (LQS) event. Held as a part of the Taranaki Longboard Classic, the event was the final decider for the 2026 WSL Australia/Oceania LQS season, seeing Conroy and men’s runner-up Nicholas Brewer (AUS) crowned as regional champions to earn their place on the 2026/27 WSL Longboard Tour (LT). Competing in her first-ever WSL event, Gisborne’s Te Waiotu Fairlie (NZL) placed runner-up in the women’s division.

A full day of action in clean two-to-three-foot surf at New Plymouth’s Fitzroy Beach allowed the event to be completed in a single day, beginning at dawn and finishing at dusk. 

Following a loss from rankings leader Luana Matthies (AUS) in Round 2, Beatrice Conroy (AUS) needed no less than a win to secure her Rookie season on the Longboard Tour. Placing just 50 points ahead of 15-year-old Matthies on the rankings, the 22-year-old Victorian was able to secure her long-held dream after defeating Te Waiotu Fairlie (NZL) in the Final to claim her first LQS victory. Conroy scored the highest numbers of the women’s event in her Semifinal defeat of Hannah Kohn (NZL), a 14.33 (out of a possible 20) heat total that included a single-wave score of a 7.83 (out of a possible 10). Having already competed in the Bioglan Bells Beach Longboard Classic twice as a Wildcard, Conroy now looks forward to once again competing at home as a full-time member of the elite Tour.

"I am over the moon to get to the WSL," Conroy said. "The experience at Bells Beach last year as a wildcard was amazing. I felt so welcomed by the surfers on Tour and decided I wanted to join them. My chances were pretty low going in at No. 7 for the Australian qualifiers, so I took the pressure off and just took it heat by heat. Being welcomed by the Taranaki community was lovely and I was just super happy to be there. I think the vibe on the beach helped me relax and surf to my potential. I am so keen for the Tour, a little bit of negotiation with my uni supervisors and I'll make it work. I'm sure surrounding myself with such high calibre of surfers will lift my form, I'm really excited to explore the places the Tour will take me."

Jack Tyro (NZL) broke through to claim his first WSL victory in a hotly contested men’s Final against Noosa’s Nicholas Brewer (AUS). On his road to the Final, the 19-year-old from Christchurch posted the event’s only excellent heat total of 16.00. A multiple-time NZ National Champion, Tyro finished the LQS season second in the regional rankings to Brewer, who was able to hold onto the lead following a win in the first event of the season, the Noosa Longboard Pro. 

"For years New Zealanders have been moving to Australia to take their surfing to the next level, but now, through initiatives like the Egmont Honey Pro, we’ve been given the opportunity to take it to next level on our side of the Tasman, and I’m so proud to be a part of it," Tyro said. "The LQS is a massive opportunity for longboarders to show the world what they can do, and bringing that opportunity here in NZ is great for the local community. It was so cool to see massive viewing scaffolding filled up with spectators throughout the day of the competition, with the Taranaki community getting right behind the event and making it all possible. To win at home is always an incredible experience. To be surrounded by the people that have been cheering for you since day one, and knowing there’s a pathway for the next generation of longboarders."

Brewer’s regional title secured his qualification onto the 2026/27 LT season and came only after an extremely narrow Semifinal win over Jaxon Willows (NZL). Defeating Willows by just 0.03, after a near buzzer-beater from the 18-year-old Kiwi came up short, Brewer was excited to be able to guarantee his first full LT season.
"It's been a bit of a dream for a while, so to get in with the best and give it a nudge, it's exciting," Brewer said. "I was pretty nervous. Jaxon [Willows'] such a good surfer and yeah, local boy. I saw the wave and it could have been the score and just got lucky. It's how it goes sometimes, I'll take it."
The Egmont Honey Pro LQS ran at Taranaki, North Island, New Zealand, from May 30 - June 1, 2026. For more information, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com