by HEATHER-LYNN EVANSON

A CHANGING SWELL along the South Coast should put a smile on the faces of surfers as the Caribbean Surf Network (CSN) Suzuki Brandons Pro enters the final day today at Drill Hall Beach.

And the local contingent, led by names like Mark Holder, Brian Gooding and Lewis St John, will be looking to wrest the title from 2007 defending champion Alan Davis of Trinidad.

Huge swells at the normally placid Drill Hall Beach guaranteed the local and international surfers big off-the-top manoeuvres on each wave.

And once again, St John and Bruce Mackie will find themselves going head to head – this time in the Juniors final, as both of them won their semi-final heat yesterday.

Rounding out the four will be promising youngster Jordan Heaselgrave and Martinique surfer Seon Millienne who will be giving the final a Caribbean flavour.

Competition starts at 9 a.m. with the quarter-finals, semis and finals in the Men's Open, Ladies Open and in the body-board divisions.

Co-ordinator of the event Nick Donawa said while he was heartened with the 36 surfers who entered the competition, he was disappointed with the local entries.

"For this event, we are trying to promote competitive surfing and not necessarily surfing in the best conditions. They are not really that bad but they are not the classic conditions that everybody wants," he said, adding that waves at the Soup Bowl, Bathsheba, were too big, while the West Coast had "no waves".

"Tomorrow [today] we will still be looking for quality surfing and the weather report says the swell will change in a direction in our favour, which is good," he added.