Kelly Slater tees off after bizarre penalty knocks himself out of back-to-back bid

World No.1 Kelly Slater and two-time world champion John John Florence have made shock round-three exits at the World Surfing League event at Sunset Beach in Hawaii.

Slater started the event as the top-ranked surfer after winning the season-opening leg at Pipeline earlier this month.

But the 50-year-old’s bid to win back-to-back events came crashing down on Thursday when he was handed a priority interference in his round-three heat against South African Matthew McGillivray.

With the round-three heats overlapping, Slater took off on a wave when Florence had the priority in the dying moments of the Hawaiian’s match-up against Jake Marshall.

Slater pulled out immediately once he realised Florence was taking the wave, but the damage was already done and the judges handed him a priority interference.

It meant that Slater could only register a score on one of his waves, and his 2.5 was no match for McGillivray’s two-wave total of 15.67.

“John and Jake caught waves and they were in. And I thought ‘Ok, I’m kind of free, I’m on the peak, I can get a wave’,” Kelly told the WSL broadcast.

“I caught it, and then I saw John paddling down the line. I thought, ‘he’s pretty far down the line and I’m already riding’.

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“By the time I had committed to my bottom turn, I was like ‘Oh shoot, I’m under John’s line’.

“He wasn’t technically up and riding yet when he crossed my line.

“I don’t think that I affected John’s wave in any way. I don’t think he got up until he passed me.

“But the rule is the rule, and we have to play by them.”

The result further entrenched Slater’s dislike for Sunset Beach.

“Look, I obviously