Jordy Smith Is All Grown Up
A reflection on the South African’s 15th year on tour.
About a year ago, I may or may not have claimed that Jordy Smith was the tour’s most obvious underdog.
However, despite surfing perfectly well, and making more than enough heats to avoid any mid-year-cry, Jordy had a very average year on tour — by his lofty standards.
Surprisingly, in his maturity, the 34-year-old seems genuinely positive about his year. “I think the highlight in 2022 for me was just surfing. I’ve never been more in love with surfing than I am right now.”
A damn good sentiment for any surf clip, and something we probably wouldn’t have heard from Jordy in his 20s.
Unless your wifi has been out for the last six months, you’ve probably heard (or seen) that Jordy opened up to us in revolutionary fashion for our series How Surfers Get Paid. He was both blunt and extremely articulate, peeling back the financial layers of our industry in a way only a veteran could do.
In their latest episode of the appropriately named Silver Linings, O’Neill does a wonderful job of highlighting Jordy’s mature approach, both to life and to surfing.
Enjoy.
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