MacDonald stuns at Pipeline Masters

Australian surfer Phil MacDonald has won his way through to the third round of the
Billabong Pipe Masters in Hawaii.
MacDonald, 30, used smart tactics to upset Hawaiian danger man Jamie O'Brien, who
won the event in 2006, in the opening round.
He won that heat with a two wave scoring total of 12.66 to O'Brien's 10.33.
MacDonald's next opponent was South Africa's Greg Emslie, with the Australian
breezing through the second round 10.40 to 3.83.
He joins Australian world title contenders Joel Parkinson and Mick Fanning in the
third round, scheduled for Saturday.
Parkinson and Fanning are among the 16 surfers seeded straight through to that round.
But 25-year-old Australian Josh Kerr, who had an opening round bye, did not make it
past round two.
It took the best heat score of the event so far to beat him, Frenchman Michael Picon
posting 19.76 out of a possible 20 to knock out Kerr, who scored 16.73.
Another Australian, Drew Courtney, will face former three-time world champion,
Hawaii's Andy Irons, in the second round.
Courtney had a first round bye, while Irons downed fellow Hawaiian Marcus Hickman
12.42 to 10.17, after recovering from a double interference collision early in their
heat.
Irons, a four-time winner of the event, is working his way back towards resuming
full-time competition next year, after a year out of the sport.