25-Year-Old Wins $5,000 for Surfing Pipeline's Best Wave of December

Makana Pang summed it up well, so he gets the mic to start: “It’s not about the money and clips, it's all about the Feeling and Love for the Ocean,” he shared. “But to get paid every now and then for doing what you LOVE, FEELS pretty good! 

Yesterday, the 25-year-old surfer and rising DJ from the North Shore of Oahu was awarded $5,000 for paddling headlong into December’s most impactful ride, as voted by the judges of the revamped Wave of the Winter. 

The season-long event is held in memory of the late Derek Ho, brother to Michael and uncle to Mason, who sadly passed away in July 2020 at age 55. Not only was Derek Hawaii’s first male world champion, but he was the top of Pipeline’s pecking order and had the utmost respect in the lineup until his final days. 

Makana, the son of renowned Hawaiian shaper Dennis Pang, has a reputation for being one of Pipeline's earliest risers. He's a pre-dawn kind of guy. So it makes sense that his entry happened the first day of the Wave of the Winter window in early December. The wave he knifed under was the kind of first-reef peak that causes whistling from the Volcom house. A clean, steep Pipeline drop, not a drop of water out of place. Terrifying in its perfection, and threaded by Makana without fault.

The judging panel of Dave Wassel, Nathan Fletcher, Brent Bielmann, Kahea Hart and Kawai Lindo reviewed the entries and cast their votes. The other two December finalists, Luke Tema and Shane Dorian, finished second and third, respectively, for their Backdoor barrels. Luke took home $2,500, and Shane pocketed $1,000. 

Thanks to the guiding force of Liam McNamara, this season’s Wave of the Winter also gives cash to the hardworking filmmakers who captured the surfers' rides. Kai Swagz got paid $1,000 for filming Makana's gem from the hill behind the beach park. Jim Russi got $500 for keeping his lens trained on Luke, and drone ace Tucker Wooding will take $250 for shooting Shane from above. These filmer awards are presented in honor of the late Larry Haynes, one of surfing’s hardest-working and most beloved cinematographers. His wife and daughter were in attendance last night at Banzai Sushi Bar.

Stay tuned to more Wave of the Winter action here to see which three finalists will be anointed for January (Feb. 11) and which surfer will win $25,000 in the grand finale (Waimea Valley on March 7).