Snapper Rocks returns to the WSL Championship Tour after a five-year absence, following last year’s staging at Burleigh Heads. Organizers said sand flushed from the Tweed River mouth groomed Snapper Rocks’ bank, producing solid head-high surf with long grinding walls, throaty tubes and big-air sections. Joel Parkinson called the early forecast a “barrel fest,” raising expectations for high-performance heats.

The Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro presented by GWM, Stop No. 3 on the WSL Championship Tour, will run May 1–11 with competition at Snapper Rocks. Organizers scheduled first call for Friday, May 1 at 7:30 a.m. AEST, with a potential 8:00 a.m. AEST start, and they expect to run a full day of competition on opening day. The world’s top surfers have arrived on the Gold Coast; Bonsoy is the title partner and GWM is the presenting sponsor.

Several headline matchups and ranking storylines add intrigue. Eight-time world champion and six-time Snapper winner Steph Gilmore is scheduled to face Erin Brooks, who captured the 2024 Challenger Series event at Snapper Rocks with a perfect 10; Gilmore sits last on the women’s Championship Tour after two losses. Gabriel Medina reclaimed the tour lead after finishing third at Bells Beach and second at Margaret River, is pre-seeded into round two and will meet the winner of Ramzi Boukhiam versus Morgan Cibilic. Kauli Vaast has lost both of his heats this season by less than a point, and Gabriela Bryan is tied with Lakey Peterson atop the rankings and could draw Sally Fitzgibbons or Bella Kenworthy as an opponent.