Ryan Callinan, Australia's last male hope at the Margaret River Pro, has bowed out in a tight quarter-final on Monday morning.
With the first quarter-final a walkover with John John Florence returning to Hawaii with a knee injury, Callinan and South African Jordy Smith were first in the water.
With an off-shore wind producing solid waves of almost two metres and some barrel rides, both surfers posted strong scores in the sixes to push their claims for a final four berth.
The 28-year-old Novocastrian looked to have hit the lead with five minutes remaining but his wave score of 4.07 fell just short.
Veteran Smith, who won at Bells Beach in 2017, had priority until the end of the heat and ended up advancing with a combined wave score of 11.0 to 10.90.
