How Cruz McKee Won the Shaw and Partners World Ocean Series Board Series.
The Shaw and Partners World Ocean Series rewards consistency. Cruz McKee didn’t just win the 2025/26 Shaw and Partners World Ocean Series board title he built it round by round, stacking performances that made him a geniune threat all season long. It came to the final round of the Shaw and partners World Ocean Series at the Shannon Eckstein classic.
With 32,890 total points, Cruz mastered the Shaw and Partners World Ocean series system: deliver when it counts, discard the rest, and stay in the fight all season long.
Cruz McKee could one day go down as one of the best laydown board paddlers in the sport.
Over the past few years, his trajectory has come in ebbs and flows, with consistency often the one piece missing as he pushed towards an overall series win.
In 2024, Cruz burst onto the Open scene with a breakout performance, finishing second at the Shaw and Partners North Bondi Surf Club Classic a result that signalled his arrival.
Then in 2025, everything started to build. Cruz claimed his first major victory, taking out the 10,000 point Manly Surf Open, and later that season backed it up with another win on the Friday of the World Ocean Series 10,000 weekend.
But this season, something clicked.
Cruz went on a tear, putting together the consistency that had previously eluded him. It all came down to the final event, where he delivered under pressure to secure his first-ever Shaw and Partners World Ocean Series title.
The System That Won Him the Title
- 9 events raced
- Top 5 results counted
- Multiple wins + podiums
(Mckee's series points score card )
Round by Round:
Shaw and Partners World Ocean Series Wanda 5,000 Fast Start and Early Win
1st — 5,000 pts
Cruz opened the season with a win immediately putting himself:
- On top of the rankings
- In control of his own season
Shaw and Partners World Ocean Seris Port Macquarie 7,000
6th — 4,081 pts
Not a headline result, but crucial:
- Stayed in contention
- Avoided a blowout
This would later become a discardable safety score.
Coffs Harbour 5,000 - Great Confidence Win
1st — 5,000 pts
This was massive:
Second win early in the season
Built a points buffer over the field
At this stage, Cruz had already laid the foundation of a title run.
Shaw and Partners World Ocean Series Hayden Kenny Classic (10,000)
7th — 5,550 pts
In a high-stakes event:
- Didn’t crack under pressure
- Still banked solid points
Again, not a winning day, but a series-saving one.
Glenelg Sprint Challenge – 7,000
2nd — 6,020 pts
This was where Cruz:
- Shifted from contender to favourite
- Showed he could match the best consistently
Shaw and Partners World Ocean series Murphy Builders Maroochy Classic Right Back on the Podium
2nd — 6,020 pts
Immediate response:
- Back into the top 2
Shaw and Partners Sunset 10,000 — Staying in the Hunt
4th — 6,700 pts
In one of the biggest races of the year:
- Stayed inside the top 5
- Avoided a costly low score
This kept his top 5 results incredibly strong.
Shannon Eckstein Ironman Classic — The Clutch Finish
2nd — 8,600 pts
On the biggest stage:
- Delivered one of his highest scores
- Locked in his final points tally
This was the title-sealing performance.
= Cruz Mckee Champion of the 2026 Shaw and Partners World Ocean Series Board title
Total: 32,890 points
Both Matt Bevilacqua and Charlie Verco had genuine claims to the 2025/26 Shaw and Partners World Ocean series board title, but in the end, Cruz McKee proved the most complete across the season. Bevilacqua arguably had the highest peaks winning the Hayden Kenny Classic (10,000 pts) and Maroochy Classic (7,000 pts) while Verco was ultra-dangerous early, claiming Port Macquarie (7,000 pts) and a huge 2nd at the Hayden Kenny Classic (8,600 pts). But both athletes were undone by inconsistency at key moments. Bevilacqua’s lower finishes at Port Macquarie (17th) and Glenelg (20th), combined with a 14th at Sunset, left too many gaps in his top five, while Verco’s late-season drop highlighted by 9th at Sunset and a costly 43rd at the Shannon Eckstein Ironman Classic proved decisive. In contrast, Cruz never let a big points race slip, finishing 4th at Sunset and 2nd in the Shannon Eckstein Classic, locking in a far stronger overall points profile. The margins were tight less than 3,000 points separating first and second but across a series that rewards your best five results, Cruz’s consistency under pressure ultimately edged out the higher highs of Bevilacqua and the early-season surge of Verco.
With the season fast approaching, can Cruz defend his Shaw and Partners World Ocean Series board title, or will his modern-day rivalry with Charlie Verco and Matt Bevilacqua see the crown change hands?
