As big scalps continued to fall at the season-opening ASP World Title event on the Gold Coast, surfing immortal Slater defied the trend by dominating his heat against 16-year-old Port Macquarie prodigy Banting. The 39-year-old American posted a combined two-wave score of 14.93, which included a sensational 7.83 for a great barrel ride, to defeat emerging talent Banting with 9.87 and progress to Round 4.