Mahina Florence has officially added another title to one of surfing’s most recognizable North Shore family trees: Playboy’s 2026 Playmate of the Year.
Playboy announced the honor this week, making Florence the first Kānaka Maoli, or Native Hawaiian, woman to receive the title. She previously appeared as Miss April in the magazine’s Winter 2025–26 issue. When Playboy called with the news, Florence’s reaction was aptly skeptical: “Are you sure? No take-backs. You got the right girl? Are you positive?”
See the reveal, linked here, and Mahina’s response below. And keep scrolling for photos.
Turns out, they did get the right girl.
For surf fans, Florence hardly needs an introduction. Raised on Oahu’s North Shore, she is the daughter of legendary local surfer, jiu-jitsu practitioner, and famously intimidating enforcer Kai “Borg” Garcia. She is also married to Nathan Florence, arguably the world’s foremost slab hunter, and regularly travels with him while documenting his increasingly terrifying big-wave missions from behind the camera.
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But Mahina has built an impressive career of her own. She has modeled for brands including Nike, Lululemon, Target and Coca-Cola, appeared in outlets including British Vogue, Shape, and Forbes, and worked in surf media as a beach reporter and filmmaker.
Playboy shot Florence’s Playmate of the Year feature back home on the North Shore, visiting places important to her upbringing. For Florence, the honor is also tied closely to representing Hawaiian culture.
Playboy officially unveiled the historic feature, spotlighting Mahina as “making history as the first Native Hawaiian woman to hold the title.” In an emotional announcement, Mahina reflected on what the honor means to her personally and culturally: “To represent my home, my culture, and Native Hawaiian women on a global platform like this is beyond anything I could have imagined. Mahalo to Playboy for honoring my roots and allowing me to share my story authentically.”
Connecting with her Hawaiian identity, she told Playboy, “can be through surf. It can be through connecting to our island. It can be through family and the standards we hold for ourselves and how we treat others.”
Playboy
That sentiment isn’t new. Florence has previously said, “I always want to show that our beauty and strength are timeless.”
So, yes, Mahina Florence is married to one of surfing’s hardest chargers and comes from legitimate North Shore royalty.
But Playboy’s latest honor is entirely her own.
