Picklum’s Rebel Route to World Title Glory
When most CT surfers roll with a full-time coach, physio and therapist, 22-year-old Molly Picklum looked at the 2025 tour and said, “I’ll drive, thanks.” She fired the playbook, leaned into everything from jiu-jitsu choke-holds to under-water wrestling, and still walked away with the Duke Kahanamoku Trophy. The Sydney Morning Herald lays out how she made it happen.
Step one: part ways—amicably—with long-time mentor Glenn “Micro” Hall after her third year on tour. Picklum insists she wasn’t going rogue; she just wanted fresh eyes at every stop. From South Africa to Rio, she booked local brains, tried weird training, and kept the vibe loose. Hall still jokes that backing her into a corner only wakes the “Central Coast pit-bull.” Apparently you learn that maneuver on the jiu-jitsu mat, not the surf coach’s couch.
The payoff came under Tavarua’s lights. Earlier, CODE Sports caught her arriving home, trophy in tow, naming the “unsung heroes” who filled the coach-shaped hole: family, friends, baristas who knew her coffee order, even a mind coach picked up after a Panthers premiership session. Surfing may look solo, she says, but “I don’t want to be lonely out there.” Spoken like a true team-of-one.
Takeaway for the rest of us: whether you’re lining up a backside pit or a golden-hour shoot, the right support network doesn’t have to wear a team jacket—sometimes it’s just the local who keeps your fins waxed and your head straight.