Soleil Farnworth made a triumphant return to competitive surfing last weekend on the Big Island.

Farnworth won the men's open division of the Quiksilver/Kama'aina Nissan Big Island Pro Am Surfing Trials at Honoli'i Beach. The one-day contest was run in clean 3- to 4-foot waves last Saturday.

Farnworth, 18, stopped entering surf contests two years ago, but decided to return last week because his friends were competing in the event.

"I figured I had nothing to lose," he said. "I was still surfing when ever I could. But I stopped doing contests because I didn't have the time for it."

Farnworth, who is from Kapoho, said his strategy in the final heat was to wait for the larger waves.

"I surf with a lot of those guys; they're all good," he said. "But I got most of the sets, so that's where I got the scores."

As the winner of the event, Farnworth received a trip to O'ahu and entry into the Xcel Pro at Sunset Beach in November.

"I've never been in a big pro contest like that before, so I want to see how it goes," he said. "If I do good in that contest, I'm definitely going to start doing more contests."

Other division winners were Tara Lani (women's open surfing), Koa Enriquez (longboard surfing) and Micah Salazar (bodyboarding). They also received trips to O'ahu and entries into professional contests.

Other competitors receiving trips to O'ahu were Mikey O'Shaughnessy, Topo Kalimai, Neekowee Clearwater, Jennifer O'Hearn, Baba Dudoit and Jeff Silva.

KAUA'I'S HUBBARD BEGINS TITLE DEFENSE

Jeff Hubbard of Kaua'i will begin defending his bodyboarding world championship in Australia this month.

The first event of the 2007 International Bodyboarding Association world tour is scheduled to start next week at Shark Island, Australia. The Human Cronulla Shark Island Challenge is the first of eight events on the 2007 tour.

Hubbard won his first world title last year.

The 2007 tour will include events in Chile, Brazil, Portugal, Spain, the Canary Islands and Hawai'i. The tour will conclude at the Banzai Pipeline on O'ahu's North Shore in January.

Hubbard is one of three Hawai'i competitors on the tour. The others are his younger brother David Hubbard, and nine-time former world champion Mike Stewart.

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com.