Last week, Kehu Butler was on the Gold Coast with the rest of the Quiksilver team.

He was a familiar face in the waters around Coolangatta. Punting airs at D-bah. Man-hacking his way down the point at Snapper. Linking combos upon combos everywhere. But then, one day, he went missing.

He had to bail. There was a Pro Junior in Western Australia.

Two days later, he returned with him a big trophy and an even bigger grin.

Kehu dominated the Subway Pro Junior Trigg, winning every single heat he surfed. He faced fellow Quiksilver rider Kael Walsh in the final. Kael’s from WA and surfs with the gusto of a man not afraid to sacrifice a limb via a punt gone wrong — in other words, he’s hard to beat. But Kehu’s powerful, progressive surfing was able to do just that.

Good job boys!

Images courtesy of the WSL