Molly Picklum Puts on a Show to Claim Maiden Tahiti Win
Picklum claimed victory in a highly anticipated match-up against reigning World Champion Caity Simmers (USA), after defeating two former event winners on the way to the Final, Vahine Fierro (FRA) and Caroline Marks (USA). Pickum’s second CT event win of the season, her fourth overall, extended the 22-year-old’s stranglehold of the No. 1 position in the rankings. After sitting behind Simmers and Gabriela Bryan (HAW) for the first two-thirds of the season, the Australian leapfrogged both surfers to take a convincing lead following her event win in Brazil, which she further strengthened with a runner-up finish in South Africa and has now run away with thanks to her performance today. The only woman of the current Final 5 with prior WSL Finals experience not to win a World Title, Picklum is carrying serious momentum headed into the event that could see her join the iconic Australian legacy of World Champions.
“I’m so stoked,” Picklum said. “What a special place, Tahiti. You feel all the energy. It’s just so nice. I’m staring at the mountains right now and staring into perfect blue. It’s where the dream comes alive. And Fiji next. I’m gonna enjoy it for what it is. I finished number one this year. It’s a massive step in the right direction. Hopefully I can get that, you know, cherry again in Fiji.”
The scores of the women’s Final told of an entirely one-sided affair, with Simmers earning just 4.94 (out of a possible 20) from her two-wave total, while Picklum posted one of the highest totals of the season at 17.26. But the final tally doesn’t account for the near misses of the reigning World Champion. The Californian came close to emerging from what undoubtedly would have been the highest number of the event, but ultimately it was the Australian who was in complete rhythm with the ocean, delivering a trio of excellent scores. Picklum drove through barrel after barrel on some of the biggest waves of the day to seal victory on an event that she had already convincingly stamped her mark on throughout the week.
“Honestly, it was so nice to just make a couple of waves and not get so flogged,” Picklum continued. “I felt like I earned my stripes this event, and I’m so happy. I wish Caity [Simmers] had obviously made one. It would have made it more exciting. The poor girl was so buggered at the end there. But, I’ve been on that side of the stick, and I’m so happy to get another one up.”
Californian Simmers Lock In No. 3 Seeds Ahead of Fiji
Reigning World Champion Caity Simmers (USA) was an absolute standout all event, riding some of the longest, deepest tubes of the week with superior technique and style. Simmers’ second Final appearance in Tahiti was enough to guarantee her seed No. 3 in the WSL Final 5 and gave her the perfect warm-up for the long, hollow, reef pass barrels of Cloudbreak, the location of the upcoming Lexus WSL Finals. Simmers will head to Fiji later this month to defend her World Title.
“I’m kind of confused right now. I was underwater for most of that Final, so I’m pretty tired,” Simmers joked. “But yeah, I mean, Molly [Picklum] and I, we’re just friends, she gives me advice on more than just surfing, and it’s good to have someone like that. And also in Finals like that, and just all of our heats in general, we kind of tend to surf better, I feel like, when we’re together. I was talking the other day about having to surf here when it’s good, you kind of have to be a little bit stupid and also be calculated, too, and the balance of that. I feel like I was just stupid and she was calculated. So that was kind of how it went. Molly ripped that one, and I had fun, too. I got some good visions and also some good wipeouts and everything you want out here, I guess, except to win.”
Erin Brooks and Marco Mignot Claim 2025 Rookie of The Year Honors
CT newcomers Erin Brooks (CAN) and Marco Mignot (FRA) have finished their maiden year at the elite level in style, claiming the 2025 WSL Championship Tour Rookie of the Year titles. With fellow Rookies Joel Vaughan (AUS) and Alan Cleland (MEX) bowing out before the end of the Round of 16, Mignot held onto No. 16 on the rankings to finish the year as the highest-ranked surfer of his rookie class. 18-year-old Brooks, who has already won a CT event as a wildcard, managed two Semifinal appearances this season to end the year at No. 8 on the rankings. The pair join an elite group of Rookie of the Year recipients, including WSL Champions Caity Simmers (USA), Stephanie Gilmore (AUS), Carissa Moore (HAW), and Italo Ferreira (BRA).
“I’m super happy to get Rookie of the Year,” Mignot said. “It’s been an amazing battle between Al [Cleland], Joel [Vaughan], and me. We really went big, and I mean, we had no choice because on this tour, the level is so high, and we showed we can do it. In the end, it was between me and Alan, and I would have been happy either way, as he is a great friend of mine. It’s been a beautiful year with lots of learning. To win this was a goal that I wrote down at the start of the year, and I achieved it, so I’m super happy. Now it’s time to reset and bring on 2026.”
For highlights and more information from Finals Day at the Lexus Tahiti Pro Presented by I-SEA, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.
Lexus Tahiti Pro Presented by I-SEA Women’s Final Results:
1 – Molly Picklum (AUS) 17.26
2 – Caitlin Simmers (USA) 4.94
