Tom Myers Just Showed The World How To Get A Florence Sponsorship

“It’s nice hearing nice words about you, but I’m not about to start a YouTube channel,” Tom Myers told Stab recently. “I love my family, and I love surfing, and I just want to keep my head down. Though if I could get a sticker on the nose of my board that would help me chase a few more big swells, well, I wouldn’t knock it back, would I?”

Turns out, all it takes to get signed by John Florence and his board builder Pyzel is to paddle into Queenscliff’s outer bombie, put your skull on the line, thread two waves that get immediately mythologised, and have the place renamed in your honour. John called, and Tommy stuck to his word. He didn’t knock the sticker back.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Stab Magazine (@stab)

Despite being sponsored by Quik as a kid, Tom shelved the dream of pro-surf, picked up carpentry, and then a Fire Brigade badge. Now 33, with two kids, he’s landed in unlikely company. “I had a contract with Quiksilver throughout my early career. I didn’t exactly smash it, but I made a final or two and was trying to see if there was a way of making a living out of being a surfer,” he said.

“I loved big waves, but I couldn’t see a pathway to making a living out of it. There were no Nic von Rupps, Nathan Florences, or Chumbos buying sick pads with big contracts. Eventually, I gave up on that dream, trained as a carpenter, joined the Fire Brigade, bought a house, and just focused on family, work, and the waves at home. Ten years on, it’s come full circle.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sydney Surf Daily (@sydneysurfdaily)

For his double assault on the Queensie bombie, Tom took home the Aloha Surf Shop Wave of the Winter.

“Florence are super associated with big and heavy waves, and that’s what I love to do,” he said, draped in Florence branding from head to toe. “To get on with a brand like that is an honour, and I can’t wait to go surf with them.”