JANUARY 14, 1970

NATIVE HAWAIIAN CHAMPION SURFER VINCENT SENNEN “SUNNY” GARCIA BORN

Born in Mā’ili, Oahu, Garcia dropped out of school at age 17 and went on the Hawaiian Surfing Association tour. In his debut at the 1986 Gotcha Pro at Sandy Beach, he topped world champ Tom Carroll. “Sunny” became known as the “West Side Wonder” and Surfer magazine’s Derek Hynd likened him to a modern-day Cassius Clay. He just missed the Top 16 in 1987, but sudden access to money, drugs, and independence led him off track until the early ’90s. Between 1990 and his retirement in 2005, he won the world championship in 2000, won 6 Hawaiian Triple Crown titles, and was amongst the world’s top 10 every year. He holds the record for most World Qualification Series event wins, 22, and is only the 2^nd pro surfer to win over $1 million in prize money. Unfortunately, in 2006, he spent 3 months in federal prison the for tax evasion. “Sunny” returned to professional surfing in 2008.  In 2010, Garcia was inducted into the Surfing Walk of Fame at Huntington Beach.

Sources:

Jason Borte, “Sunny Garcia (January 14, 1970 -), Surfline.  Retrieved 7/28/2022, Sunny Garcia Biography and Photos | SURFLINE.COM

Wikipedia

Photo:  Mike Manoa, 2007. Permissive use under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en