South Africa’s Luke Thompson secured victory in the Balito Pro this weekend. The 21-year old now jumps to no.2 in the World Surf League (WSL) Challenger Series (CS) rankings, pushing him ever-closer to a full-time WSL Championship Tour berth in 2026.
Luke Thompson has been a bright CS contender for the last three years. But the Balito Pro – his maiden victory on tour – signifies a major breakthrough for the South African surfer. Better still, his top-notch performance secured him a wild card to this week’s J-Bay Open Championship Tour (CT) event in front of his home fans.
LUKE THOMPSON, A RISING STAR
Moreover, the timing of Luke Thompson’s performance couldn’t be better, as the WSL reforms its tour policies. Currently, the bottom half of the Championship Tour (CT) face something called the mid-season cut. Essentially, this relegates 32 top-notch surfers down a division to the Challenger Series (CS).
It’s due to this (somewhat) unpopular rule that you often get such high caliber of competition in the second-tier CS. Fellow South African Matt McGillivray surfed for five years on the CT, only to be abruptly cut at Margaret River earlier this year. This sent him down to the CS, along with the likes of Aussie George Pittar, Jacob Wilcox, Liam O’Brien and Olympic gold medalist Kauli Vast from France.
VICIOUS COMPETITION
The point being that with 80 hungry hot shots, CS surfing is insanely cutthroat. And the gravitas of Luke Thompson winning a CS event at age 21 must not be underestimated. South African Adin Masencamp won the Balito Pro back in 2021. And Jordy Smith won it back in 2017.
Better still, WSL rule changes for 2026 mean there will no longer be a mid-season cut on the CT. So, any hopefuls – like South Africa’s Luke Thompson and Matt McGillivray – who qualify for the CT this season, get to surf the entire compliment of events in 2026. The top ten ranked men automatically gain entry into the CT next year.
FIVE REMAINING CS EVENTS
There are five CS events left between now and next March to decide who moves up to the CT in 2026:
- Jul 26 – Aug 3 – US Open of Surfing in Huntington Beach, California
- Sep 29 – Oct 5 – Ericeira Pro in Ericeira, Portugal
- Oct 11 – 19 – Saquarema Pro in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Jan 28 – Feb 8 – Pipe Challenger in Oahu, Hawaii
- Mar 8 – 15 – Newcastle Surfest in Newcastle, Australia
Just a reminder that the J-Bay Open event window opens this Friday 11 July 2025. Based on conditions, tour organisers will decide the best days to run the event. South Africa’s Jordy Smith, who is pushing for his first world title, is currently ranked no.1 in the world, albeit by a slim margin. Even if you’re not a surf fan, Smith surfing in the yellow jersey in front of his home crowd promises to be one of the South African sporting events of the year. So, get out there and support the Big Bru!
HOW PROUD ARE YOU OF LUKE THOMPSON?
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