An international cast of surfers had their heads in the clouds today with Typhoon Lupit whipping up epic 6 foot plus waves for the opening day of the Billabong Cloud 9 Invitational at Siargao Island in the Philippines. Cloud 9 lived up to its hype, serving up a smorgasbord of hollow, tubing waves, as contest organisers opted to run round one heats before completing four sudden-death, round two heats to close out the day. Excellent scores were the norm as surfers from Australia, Bali, Japan, New Zealand, Indonesia, South Africa and the Philippines pushed their tube riding skills to the limit, weaving deep through the bellies of cavernous waves. Hawaiian Jamie O'Brien fired a warning shot to his fellow rivals by switch-footing his way through a Cloud 9 keg to post the event's first perfect 10-point ride. The former Pipeline Master, who arrived at the break only a few hours before his opening round heat, showed no signs of jetlag, netting a combined two-wave total of 17.80 to easily beat Australian Cahill Bell Warren (9.83) and local Philippines surfer Rodolfo Alcala (3.10) in a one-sided affair. Post heat, O'Brien said he was surprised to score so big. "I didn't feel too good out there. I was really out of it. I had a 7 and a 6, but I thought I was going to get beaten. That one came through and it seemed a good opportunity to go switch and get a big score. I went for it and got the best score I've gotten for going switch. I'm stoked." The excellent rides continued to come thick and fast with Australian Sam Page threading through the eye of a big, perfect barrel to net the event's second 10-point ride in the last heat of the day. Other standouts included Nick Vasicek, Jay Quinn, Gavin Beschen, Dale Staples and Stephen Walsh. Competition is expected to continue tomorrow with Typhoon Lupit predicted to continue to lash the region with flawless, barrelling waves. 'Cloud 9' is located on Siargao Island. The wave is a powerful and hollow right-hander that has been frequently compared to the renowned surf of Hawaii and Indonesia. Due to Siargao's proximity to the Philippine Deep, big swells from the Pacific Ocean roll in from the second deepest stretch of water in the world to create flawless, hollow barrelling waves. The Billabong Cloud 9 Invitational 2009 is proudly supported by Billabong, Province of Surigao Del Norte, Stoked Inc, Von Zipper sunglasses, Nixon, Kustom footwear, Friendster, and Sagana Resort.