Ryohei Nishino posted top wave score at Omaezaki Pro opening day
NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 28, 2026
Nishino led
The whitebuffalo OMAEZAKI PRO 2026 opened at Omaezaki Long Beach in Shizuoka, Japan, with Japan’s Nishino setting the standard on the first day. Nishino posted the day’s highest single-wave score, a 7.17, after landing three solid lip maneuvers on a clean wave. It was the clear standout ride of the opening session and gave him the top mark in a field that spent the day dealing with stomach-high surf. The event got moving with the Men’s QS2000 Rounds of 80 and 64 and the Men’s Pro Junior Round of 56, so the early pace was set quickly as surfers tried to make the most of the first scoring opportunities.
Omaezaki conditions shift
The opening day never settled into one rhythm. Persistent west winds and a shifting tide changed the scoring conditions as the event moved through the day, and that forced competitors to adjust with each new set. Surfers had to work with waves that stayed stomach-high, but the wind and tide kept changing the shape and timing of the lineup. That made each heat a moving target. Clean sections became harder to find, and the margin for error tightened as the conditions evolved. The opening rounds reflected that challenge, with surfers facing a surf window that asked for patience, quick reads and precise execution rather than power alone.
Watanabe debuts
The day also brought a local storyline into focus. Eiru Watanabe, a high school surfer from the area, made his first official contest appearance at the event. His debut carried extra weight because he had helped support the competition during the previous four editions before entering the lineup himself. That gave his first start a different kind of meaning, one tied to the community around Omaezaki Long Beach as much as to the result in the water. For a local surfer to move from helping run the event to competing in it added another layer to an opening day already shaped by changing conditions and a strong early performance from Nishino.
