Merewether's Ryan Callinan has moved one step closer to regaining his spot on the men's world tour after winning his opening Challenger Series (CS) heat in Portugal.
Callinan advanced to the round of 48 with a total of 14.10, combining his two best waves of 7.23 and 6.87, seeing him finish ahead of Spain's Andy Criere (12.53).
Indonesia's Ketut Angus (11.17) and Hawaii's Eli Hanneman (9.26) were eliminated from competition on Sunday.
Callinan, 30, sits fourth on the second-tier rankings before points from Portugal and upcoming stops in Hawaii are taken into consideration.
The top-10 surfers will be promoted to the main draw for 2023, alongside Merewether's Jackson Baker, with Callinan and Morgan Cibilic both having dropped out after this year's mid-season cut.
Cibilic (19th) didn't hit the water at Ericeira on day one, scheduled next in heat 19.
Women's competition wasn't yet underway with Philippa Anderson (31st) first up and Sarah Baum (17th) in heat seven.
