After much speculation, the Lowers Pro at Trestles has officially been postponed for the year. Announced by Grind Media, which has licensed and has produced the contest since 2004, the ASP Prime surfing event will not be held in 2013 due to lack of a title sponsor.

"Due to the economic climate and timing of the transition of the former title sponsor, we have not secured a new partner in the title position to operate at the Prime level. The content emerging from the Lowers Pro rivals that of any World Tour event, and we look forward to delivering this experience to surf fans next year," said Lowers Pro Event Director Sean Nielsen.

Current plans indicate that the event will return to the schedule in 2014. For the past several years the Lowers Pro has been sponsored by Nike, which helped elevate it to ASP Prime status. But after the sportswear giant pulled the plug on their surf program in December, the future of the event has been uncertain. Nike also sponsored the U.S. Open of Surfing, which has now been picked up by Vans.

"It's obviously unfortunate to lose such a great venue from the ASP North America schedule, but we also realize that finding a new title sponsor with short notice in our current economy was incredibly challenging," said Meg Bernardo, ASP North America Executive Manager.

The loss of the Lowers Pro is the latest contest to fall off of the North American ASP schedule. The O'Neill Cold Water Classic and Vans Pier Classic have been removed from the ASP 2013 schedule as well. The U.S. Open is the only Prime event on mainland soil, and the only other Star event will be the four-star Coastal Edge East Coast Surfing Championships in August.