Taj Burrow | |
---|---|
Personal information | |
Born | Busselton, Western Australia, Australia | 2 June 1978
Residence | Yallingup, Western Australia, Australia Bali, Indonesia |
Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) |
Weight | 72 kg (159 lb) |
Surfing career | |
Best year | 1999 & 2007 – 2nd in ASP World Tour Ranking |
Career earnings | $10,402,420 |
Sponsors | Billabong, Lost Surfboards, Von Zipper, Globe, Futures Fins |
Major achievements | ASP World Tour Runner Up 1999, 2007 ASP Rookie of the Year 1998 |
Surfing specifications | |
Stance | Natural (regular foot) |
Website | tajburrow.com |
Taj Burrow (born 2 June 1978) is an Australian retired professional surfer. Taj retired from the WSL World Tour in June 2016 where he left a legacy of power and impressive surfing.
Burrow was born in Yallingup, Western Australia, Australia to American parents and began surfing at age 7. [1]
In 1998 he qualified for the ASP World Tour at the age of 18 years, becoming the youngest surfer to ever win a national title. [2] Burrow had already earned a place on the world tour a year earlier, but he turned it down stating that, as a 17-year-old, he was "too young to do the tour full-on". [1] [3] After his first year on tour in 1998, Burrow claimed the ASP World Tour Rookie of the Year award after finishing 12th place in the rankings. [4] [5]
In 2007 Burrow won the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach, Victoria, Australia. [6] He backed this up with a victory at the 2007 Billabong Pro in Jeffrey's Bay, South Africa, where he claimed the title over the then 8-time world champion, Kelly Slater. This win helped to secure his 2nd-place ranking on the ASP Men's Tour, his second runner-up season placing.
In 2009, Burrow defeated Slater in the final of the Billabong Pipeline Masters at the Banzai Pipeline. [7] In the same year he finished fourth place on the World Tour. [5]
Burrow won the 2013 Hurley Pro event in September 2013 for the first time, beating fellow Australian Julian Wilson. [8]
As of September 2013, Burrow is sponsored by Globe, Billabong, Modom Surf, Von Zipper and Nanotune. [5]
In 2003 Burrow released a book entitled Taj Burrow's Book of Hot Surfing, [9] and has also produced a series of his own surf videos: Sabotaj (2000), [10] Montaj (2002) [11] and Taj Burrow's Fair Bits (2005). [2]
In 2008–09 Globe released a shoe line named after Burrow. [12]
Since 2005 Burrow has hosted the 'Taj Small Fries' junior surfing competition at Yallingup, Western Australia. [13]
Burrow married Rebecca Jobson in November 2018. [14] The couple had an intimate ceremony so Jobson's sick mother was able to attend. They had a second wedding in February 2019. [15] The couple have two daughters. [16] Jobson was a contestant (and placed 6th) on cycle 4 of Australia's Next Top Model in 2008.
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