Hurricane Genevieve was supposed to steal the show at the 2026 U.S. Open of Surfing, but as the week’s worn on, and the surf’s continued to pump, it’s been the crew that grew up together 40 miles south in San Clemente that has put their stamp on the event. With the men’s Round of 16 decided, six of the sixteen competitors remaining grew up sparring at Lowers.
The brotherly duo of Griffin and Crosby Colapinto are leading the charge into finals weekend, with Cole Houshmand bringing the power, Taj Lindblad bringing the passion, Hayden Rodgers bringing the upsets, and Kade Matson bringing the return to form. All compelling stories on their own, the fact that this crew’s hammering through heats speaks to not only the ridiculous depth of talent currently coming out of San Clemente, but where the future of American surfing is headed. And while we’re currently seeing the Brazilian Storm rage on the Championship Tour, there’s an American Storm brewing on the Challenger Series.
In a massive stroke of luck for the San Clemente contingent, none of them face each other in the Round of 16, so odds are, a few of them find their way into the quarters, semis, or even final. Griffin’s won here before, while Cole’s coming off a win at the first Challenger event of the year in South Africa.
As far as matchups go, Crosby’s got fellow SoCal journeyman Jake Marshall in the first heat of the Round of 16. Up next, Taj takes on Brazilian upstart Gabriel Klaussner. Hayden has rising Baja star Lucas Cassity in heat three. Cole’s got veteran Deivid Silva. Griffin’s got fellow Quiksilver team member Jackson Bunch. And Kade rounds things out against Mateus Herdy.
There are no easy heats at the U.S. Open, and as the swell fades into the weekend, things will most certainly tighten up, but we may be looking at the best overall American performance in U.S. Open history. Stay tuned, finals are coming up Sunday afternoon.
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