A near-perfect ride helped Molly Picklum shake a monkey from her back at the Trestles Pro, where a runner-up finish firmed her top-three standing.
The Australian's 9.6-point wave - the highest women's score all season - in a semi-final defeat of defending world champion and local hope Caity Simmers ensured she finally got the better of the Californian in their seventh encounter.
But Hawaiian Bettylou Sakura Johnson (17 points) was too good in the final, edging Picklum (14.3) in San Clemente.
The Australian's result firmed her hold of third place, well clear of fourth with three regular season events remaining before the top five battle for the World Surf League title in Fiji in August.
"I'm really happy with second place," Picklum, hunting her third top-five finish in just her fourth season, said.
"This year, more than any other year, I've been pushed inside and outside of the water.
"Caity obviously pushed me, and I'm so happy to have gotten one over her.
"She beats me every time, and then Bettylou, I got her a few times early on in our career, and now she's starting to get me.
"She inspires me in the water, and it's just incredible. Everyone's just so capable of beating everyone, and I'm so happy to be here."
Joel Vaughan's giant-killing run ended in the quarter-finals while Jack Robinson (16.10) was pipped by Kanoa Igarashi (17.10) in the semi-finals.
The Japanese surfer (16.07) was then edged in a high-scoring final by Brazil's Yago Dora (17.90).
Ethan Ewing also made the quarter-finals, he and Robinson sixth and seventh respectively in a stacked men's ladder pushing for a Fiji berth in the final year of the top-five format.
The tour now moves to Brazil's Saquarema break in Rio de Janeiro, with the window opening on June 21.
