The 34th annual SURFER Poll and Video Awards presented by Suzuki Automotive will bring the world’s most renowned faces in action sports, music and entertainment to The Grove of Anaheim on Sept. 12 to honor the best in surfing and surf cinematography. This year the SURFER Poll will not only honor the top surfers, but also recognize some of the key organizations that have made a significant impact on the sport of surfing. SURFER Magazine, the industry-leading publication from Primedia Inc., once again is integrating a charity component to this year’s awards show, teaming up with the Surfrider Foundation, Surfing Heritage Foundation and San Onofre Foundation. Read more...
Download Pat O'Connell's Bio
For the past twelve years Pat O’Connell has been a fixture on the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Championship Tour (WCT). During his time on tour O’Connell became one of America’s most successful professional surfers. He is known not only for his great surfing ability but also for his analytical mind and articulate speech. It’s no wonder that O’Connell is consistently called upon to speak as the voice of American Professional surfing.
A thinking man’s pro if you will.
Pat is generally considered the happiest surfer alive. Take away the sponsor checks, the contest jerseys and the fame, and this Endless Summer II star would still spend the majority of his waking hours in the water. One of the most outgoing and well-liked pro surfers ever, it's hard to imagine he spent the first 12 years of his life without seeing the ocean.
Born in Chicago to lifelong Midwesterners Kevin O'Connell, a small business owner, and Cindy, Patrick Regan O'Connell was a certified soccer freak. He traveled the Midwest and beyond playing for a select team from the Chicago area. O'Connell was awakened from his inland reverie by a television show that featured then-world surfing champ Margo Oberg. "It got my attention because there were dolphins," he remembers. "I thought that was the coolest thing." Kevin moved the family to Newport Beach in the early '80s, but O'Connell's initiation to surfing was hampered by a fear of the ocean and a dislike to kelp.
The following year, the O'Connell's relocated to Dana Point, where he fell in with local surfers. "It wasn't who could surf the best, it was who could surf the longest," remembers O'Connell of his formative surfing experiences. In an early amateur surfing event, he lied about his age to surf in the menehune division and suffered a severe fin gash to the eye the following day. He remains convinced it was a lesson for his dishonesty.
He soon advanced through the National Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA) ranks and was also a member of the Dana Hills High School surf team, where he was an excellent student until an enhanced travel schedule nearly ruined his senior year. In 1990, O'Connell represented the United States in the World Amateur Championships in Japan, winning the first event and finishing ninth overall in the Open Division.
Immediately after turning professional the same year, he became a darkhorse winner of two pro surfing events and appeared on the cover of Surfing magazine. Seeking success on the WCT, his mission was altered when he earned one of the lead roles in Bruce Brown's remake of his 1966 classic, Endless Summer. "I had to put everything on hold," remembers Pat. "No photo trips, no contests, nothing. But by concentrating on surfing perfect waves and surfing well, I became a wellrounded surfer." When it was over, he put aside his celebrity status and worked his way through the World Qualifying Series (WQS), qualifying in the WCT and becoming one of the elite Top 44 surfers in the world his first year back, a testament to the impact of his travels.
While his fluid style was never embraced by the system, he maintained his Top 44 world ranking for many seasons, peaking in 1998 at 11th on the World Championship Tour and 10th in the Surfer Magazines Surfer Poll.
Since coming off the WCT in December 2004, O’Connell has been busier than ever working for his sponsors: surfing, shooting videos, photos and TV shows. O’Connell is also donating some of his time back to the sport he loves by acting as a spokesman for the Surfrider Foundation.
Pat’s outgoing demeanor and proximity to surfing's hub will keep him a prominent figure in the sport for years to come. A welcome reprieve from the brooding tough guy surfer, he is living proof that nice guys do finish first, or pretty close to it.
