Mick Fanning broke his Hawaiian surfing duck with a resounding return to form a week out from the world title decider.
The Australian three-time world champion outpointed his friend and compatriot Julian Wilson in the final of the Vans World Cup at Sunset Beach on Oahu's North Shore.
Wilson is among five surfers who will challenge Fanning for the World Surf League crown in the Pipeline Masters from next Tuesday at nearby Banzai Pipeline.
Their friendship became tighter in July when Fanning famously fought off a shark attack during the final of the J-Bay Open and Wilson paddled over to help him.
Fanning leads the World Surf League rankings, but he slipped up with a 13th at the second-last round two months ago in Portugal.
He put that behind him with an outstanding performance on the last day of competition at Sunset Bay.
Fanning won three of his four heats on Friday (AEST) and saved his best until last.
After Wilson made the early running in the final with a 9.47 wave score, Fanning took the lead from him with a 9.87 - the best of the day.
That was enough for Fanning to win the final with a 15.20 total ahead of Wilson's 12.57.
Hawaiian John John Florence finished third on 12 and Australian Matt Wilkinson scored 10.20 in the final.
The World Cup and the Masters are the last two events of Hawaii's famed Triple Crown.
Despite his widespread success, until now Fanning had never won a big Hawaiian event.
"It's been a dream of mine, to win an event here in Hawaii," Fanning said.
"To do it at Sunset, I am so stoked."
He admitted the busy day of competition had taken its toll.
"If the event (Pipe Masters) was on tomorrow, I'd be dead - I am so tired," Fanning said after the final..
"But I just had a lot of fun all day."
Fanning also won his round four and quarter-final heats and then took second in the semi-finals behind Florence.
The final contest for the world title will be riveting.
Fanning is on 49,700 points, only 200 ahead of Filipe Toledo, while fellow Brazilian Adriano de Souza is third on 49,450.
They are the main three contenders, but even seventh-placed Wilson is in the hunt on 41,450.
The others are reigning world champion Gabriel Medina (Brazil), who is fourth on 45,350 and Australian Owen Wright, fifth on 43,600.
A quirk of the points system means that sixth-placed Brazilian Italo Ferreira cannot win the world title, no matter how well he does at the Pipeline Masters.
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