Wild and wooly conditions greeted the world's best for the first two days of the Billabong Pro Tahiti.

John John Florence undere the hammer. Photo: WSL/Robertson

There was no lack of swell for Rounds 1 and 2, and with raw, unpredictable 6-8ft waves detonating and clamping across the reef, there were both plenty of scoring opportunities, and none at all.

For many Round 1 winners - such as Kelly, Mick, Josh, John John and Jeremy - their familiarity of Teahupo'o from previous years paid off and put them straight into Round 3. Owen Wright was able to make it through the super-goofy-heat against Ace Buchan and CJ Hobgood.

Injury wildcard Aritz Aranburu was a Round 1 standout, posting one of the highest wave scores (8.17) and a comfortable win against Filipe Toledo and Keanu Asing who weren't claiming much.... for a change. Dusty Payne also managed an upset against goofyfooters Nat Young and Kai Otton.

Front running rookie of the year Italo Ferreira had a close win over Gabriel Medina, while Richardo Christie looked sustained a back injury during the heat and never really looked a threat.

Due to the below average conditions, the average winner's heat total was less than 14 points. The natural footers generally locked in higher scoring rides, as they were able to stall longer in the barrel compared to frontside riders, thus winning nine of the twelve heats.

The knockout Round 2 started in marginally smaller but equally wind-affected conditions as the first round.

Tour leader Adriano De Souza had a comfortable win over Trials winner and local Taumata Puhetini. Filipe Toledo showed the critics he's capable in tricky barrels, winning against injury wildcard Garrett Parkes.

CJ Hobgood had an entertaining win over Nat Young and put a few top seeds on notice, meeting Julian Wilson in the next round. Taj Burrow was beaten by Brett Simpson who always looks comfortable at Chopes, finishing in Round 5 last year after being beaten by the beast himself, Owen Wright. 

Brett Simpson lining up a smaller bowl. Photo WSL/Cestari

Matt Wilkinson got up over Freddy Patacchia and Kai Otton moved onto round 3 knocking out Miguel Pupo. Michel Bourez lived up to his nickname “The Spartan” coping a beating and breaking his first board, snapping his second board's leash and surfing his third board without a leggie... Even that wasn't enough to beat Jadson Andre who had one of the rounds highest heat totals (17.10).

Ace Buchan had a close win over Adam Melling. Keanu Asing is going to need a few good results and prize money if he's going to continue his investment into the tour's claim jar. Keanu managed a shampoo barrel in the dying seconds with a double-arm claim that was still not good enough to beat Sebastian Zietz's silky performance.

Kolohe Andino is quickly giving himself a reputation for being the on-tour Californian Chihuahua; all bark and no bite. His aggressive attitude was no good against mate Wiggoly Dantas. Andino is now needing a few good results on the CT or the security of the QS to ensure he's back on tour next year; hopefully with more tubes and less 'tude.

Gabriel Medina really stood up in his win over Kiwi Richardo Christie. Gabs put on a clinic and now faces John John in round 3 which will have the world steaming up their screens.

What we learnt from the past two days: John John is looking in-form and free from injury. Mick and Julian are on the other side of their J-Bay ordeal and looking their usual professional best. Gabs has got his game back. And the two wildcards left, Bruno Santos and  Aritz Aranburu, are going to give world number one and two, Mick and Adriano, a few nightmares tonight meeting them in Round 3 (possibly) tomorrow.

With two to three days of competition remaining; Round 3 is likely run tomorrow in slightly smaller conditions and better winds than the past 2 days. However, with a lack of swell and a poor wind direction scheduled from Wednesday onwards, we could be looking a few lay days before getting into the later rounds in the backend of the waiting period. Swellnet's Craig Brokensha says there's a strong new SW groundswell scheduled for the last day of the waiting period with moderate/strong SE (cross-onshore) winds, similar to the conditions of yesterday and today.

Round 3 shouldn't disappoint with heavy match-ups and the chance for the wildcards to prove themselves against the current title contenders. //DANNY HAYES

Like a punt? Swellnet doesn't encourage it, but if you’re like Danny and want to wager some coin on the tour, the 2015 Billabong Pro Tahiti Punters Club is brought to you by William Hill.

More Billabong Pro Tahiti coverage:
Teahupo'o Delivers Big Scores at Billabong Pro Tahiti​
Billabong Pro Tahiti 2015: Day 2 Photos
World's Best Tackle Challenging Teahupo'o for Round 1 of Billabong Pro Tahiti
Billabong Pro Tahiti 2015: Day 1 Photos