By Jack Burden

The 2024 Waterski Pro Tour’s thrilling season is set to resume with the California Pro Am at Shortline Lake. Leading the pack, skiers like Jaimee Bull, William Asher, and Team Syndicate aim to hold on to their top spots, while the battle for the season championship in jump heats up.

As the tour returns after its summer break, here’s everything you need to know heading into the final six stops of the 2024 season.

What’s Happened So Far?

It’s been almost six weeks since Corey Vaughn secured his maiden victory in England. Now, the world’s best skiers are back on the water in Elk Grove, preparing for the California Pro Am finals this Sunday. The stakes are high as world champion Jaimee Bull seeks to close out her fourth consecutive season championship.

The men’s slalom division is especially competitive, with veteran Asher feeling the pressure from up-and-coming talents like Rob Hazelwood and Cole McCormick. Meanwhile, California marks the first of four jump events that will close out the season, leaving the question of who can challenge veterans like Freddy Krueger and Ryan Dodd still unanswered.

Men’s Slalom: A Tight Race

Asher began the season in dominant form, winning the first three Pro Tour events he entered. However, his momentum faltered with a runner-up finish at San Gervasio and an uncharacteristic sixth-place finish in his home country under the lights.

The big winner on that day was Vaughn, who became the oldest man ever to win his first professional slalom title at the Oxfordshire Pro Am. So far, 2024 has been one of the most competitive men’s slalom seasons in recent memory, with six different winners across the Waterski Pro Tour and legacy Masters events.

Freddie Winter, the reigning world champion, started the season strong with a victory at the Moomba Masters, but a series of disappointing performances ended with a season-ending injury at the Monaco Slalom Cup. Similarly, world record holder Nate Smith has only competed in three professional events in 2024, opting to focus on work commitments instead, and has not looked his best when he has competed.

This has left the field wide open for rising stars like Rob Hazelwood and Cole McCormick, as well as veterans like Jonathan Travers and Vaughan, who have each registered wins this year and sit inside the top eight. With five slalom events remaining in 2024, Asher remains the man to beat, but the competition is fierce.

Can Bull Secure Her Season Championship?

Jaimee Bull holds a commanding 76-point lead over Allie Nicholson at the top of the women’s standings. Manon Costard trails Bull by over 150 points in third place, while last year’s runner-up, Regina Jaquess, is over 200 points behind in eighth. Both Costard and Jaquess seem too far behind to mount a late-season charge.

However, with five events left and only the top six events counting toward total points, Jaquess, the world record holder, could still pose a threat now that the tour has returned to her home turf in the U.S.

Jump Battle: Can Poland Challenge the Old Guard?

There has been only one jump event on the Waterski Pro Tour in 2024, but Joel Poland leads the standings after winning under the lights in Louisiana. Adding to that his victory at the US Masters, Poland boasts a perfect record this year.

Freddy Krueger, competing in his 30th season of professional jumping, is second in the standings but still seeking his first win of the year.

With four of the five jump events still to come, young challengers like Taylor Garcia, Luca Rauchenwald, and Florian Parth have plenty of opportunities to make their mark on the tour.

Women’s Jump: Is There Any Stopping Straltsova?

Jacinta Carroll’s retirement has left a significant gap in the women’s jump field, but Hanna Straltsova is quickly filling it. Straltsova has won two out of two events this year and hasn’t lost a professional jump tournament since May 2023. She consistently outpaces the competition, making it hard to imagine anyone catching her for the rest of the year.

However, the women’s jump field is the strongest it has been in some time with the return of Brittany Wharton, Lauren Morgan, and Valentina Gonzalez from injury. There may still be more excitement to come.

What’s Next?

There are six Waterski Pro Tour events remaining, four of which are multi-discipline tournaments. The season resumes with two events in quick succession, starting with the California Pro Am, followed just three days later by a midweek event in Saskatoon, Canada.

After a month-long break, the tour continues with back-to-back events in Central Florida in late September/early October before another Florida doubleheader in late October/early November to close out the season.

Interspersed throughout will be three professional overall tournaments, part of the WWS Overall Tour, with the next event running alongside the Canada Cup next week.

The final event of the season, the Miami Pro, is a five-star event with the highest single-discipline prize purse of the season, promising additional drama and crucial points for championship battles.

The Waterski Pro Tour resumes after the summer break with the California Pro Am at Shortline Lake on August 24-25. Catch all the action live on YouTube.