World surfing champion Tyler Wright has been forced into a sudden-death fourth-round meeting with fellow Australian star Stephanie Gilmore at Lower Trestles.
World No.1 Wright has struggled in defending her title at the event in California, narrowly avoiding elimination in Tuesday's second round against Australian qualifier Macy Callaghan.
Trailing world junior champion Callaghan with 12 minutes remaining, Wright took the lead with a five-turn ride, scoring a 7.43 to win 12.93 to 12.83 in metre-high waves.
Wright then missed direct entry to the quarter-finals after finishing last in her third-round heat against Americans Carissa Moore and Lakey Peterson.
She said she battled to master the conditions against Callaghan.
"Macy started off with a seven. I had an average one to start the heat off. The rest of the heat I felt was scrappy. Not a lot of clean walls came through," Wright said.
"So I was kind of scrapping in the end. It's not something you like to do but, to get through heats like that, you need to."
Moore won the third-round heat by posting scores of 8.83 and 8.40 to reach the final eight.
Six-time world champion Gilmore started the day with a convincing round-two win over compatriot Bronte Macaulay, laying down the round's second-highest scored wave of 8.5.
But Gilmore was beaten by Brazilian Silvana Lima in the third round to set up the all-Australian elimination clash with Wright.
World No.2 Sally Fitzgibbons was set to contest the third heat of the round three before surfing was called off for the day.
Fitzgibbons is set to meet fellow Australians Nikki Van Dijk and Keely Andrew.
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