A victory at sea will have to wait another day.

The O'Neill World Cup of Surfing men's contest got through the round of 32 yesterday morning, but was then postponed at midday when conditions became "unruly."

Waves were estimated to be between 8 to 15 feet (by traditional measurements) at Sunset Beach.

"We thought it would clean up as the day went along, that's why we started it in the morning," said Randy Rarick, executive director of the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing. "But it did the opposite. It got worse, and now it's just unruly. It'll decline (today) and become a little more manageable."

The quarterfinals, semifinals and final are expected to run today.

The surfers who competed yesterday backed the decision to postpone the contest.

"On the one hand, it's exciting because it's big and wild," said Sunset Beach surfer Pancho Sullivan. "But (today) is a way better option, especially for a final. It should still be around 8 feet, so I think you'll see more high performance surfing."

Sullivan was one of 16 surfers to advance through yesterday's challenging conditions. Other Hawai'i surfers advancing were Andy Irons, Sunny Garcia and Nathan Carroll.

Garcia won his heat with a two-wave total of 8.84.

"To get two 4s and still win, it's kind of depressing," he said. "I'm happy I made it through, but this is not surfing. It was more about going out and hoping for the best."

Carroll, who grew up surfing at Sunset Beach, had two good rides during his heat and posted the best total of the day with a 15.5. But he said the conditions in the water were tougher than it appeared from the beach.

"People can't see, but the current is moving like a river out there," said Carroll, 20. "I was paddling as fast as I could and I was still getting sucked in. I got kind of lucky and was in the right spot a couple of times."

Kainoa McGee of Kaimuki was one of five Hawai'i surfers eliminated yesterday.

"No excuses because everybody else had to surf in the same conditions," he said. "But this was not a good day to run a contest. Nobody would be out surfing on a day like this. It was fully dangerous out there."

The O'Neill World Cup is the second of three events in the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing.

Sullivan won the first event at Hale'iwa Ali'i Beach last month, and is the leader in the current Triple Crown standings. The Triple Crown championship goes to the best overall performer in the three events.

When the quarterfinals commence today, Sullivan will be in the same heat with Irons, Garcia and Australia's Jarrad Howse.

"Everybody at this level surfs so strong," Sullivan said. "You just have to focus on yourself and surf at the highest level you're capable of. You can't worry about who's in your next heat because you have to try and beat him no matter who it is."

UPCOMING QUARTERFINAL HEATS

Heat 1: Pancho Sullivan (Hawai'i), Jarrad Howse (Australia), Sunny Garcia (Hawai'i), Andy Irons (Hawai'i). Heat 2: Jay Thompson (Australia), Luke Stedman (Australia), Jake Paterson (Australia), Beau Mitchell (Australia). Heat 3: Pat O'Connell (California), Trent Munro (Australia), Yuri Sodre (Brazil), Mick Fanning (Australia). Heat 4: Nathan Carroll (Hawai'i), Kieren Perrow (Australia), Tim Reyes (California), Bede Durbidge (Australia).

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com.