A monster swell at the Bells Beach tournament broke boards and hearts, with waves of up to 15.5 metres recorded in open waters off the Victorian coast.

Key points: Large waves are expected through western Bass Strait over the weekend

Large waves are expected through western Bass Strait over the weekend Some beaches have closed along Victoria's west coast

Some beaches have closed along Victoria's west coast Australian Owen Wright's board snapped in two when he ducked under wave

Larger boards failed to save some of the world's biggest names from the challenging conditions, likened by 11-time surfing world champion Kelly Slater to a massive storm in the cult 1991 surfing movie Point Break.

Friday's forecast, described by Australian surfing legend Stephanie Gilmore as "terrifying", drew a big crowd and the conditions did not disappoint.

The surf built throughout the day and, by the end of the men's last-16 heats, wipe-outs were commonplace.

Stephanie Gilmore described the expected huge surf as "terrifying." ( WSL: Kelly Cestari )

John John Florence and defending event champion Italo Ferreira both had near misses when the powerful 3-metre-plus surf washed them close to the rocks.

It said something about on Friday that Florence was taken aback, given he learned his craft in Hawaii's unforgiving North Shore surf.

"It's big in there, so it's really scary, kicking out next to that [rock] shelf at Winkipop," the two-time world champion said.

"I saw it coming, I just felt all the water pulling me towards there and I thought, 'Oh my gosh, this is bad'."

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Australian Owen Wright said he certainly took notice when he ducked under a wave and his board snapped in two during an epic round-of-16 heat with Florence.

"That was when you thought, 'Whoa, this has gone up a level'," the Australian said.

"It wasn't scary as such, more like, 'Pay attention — be alert, don't just duck dive these white washes thinking you're going to get off free'.

"It definitely demanded your attention out there."

Giant swell to ease overnight

Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Rod Dixon said peak waves in Bass Strait off the west coast of Tasmania had reached 15.5 metres.

Waves of 14.5 metres were recorded off Victoria's Cape Otway.

"We're seeing the swell peaking and it will ease off overnight, but it's still a decent swell running for Saturday and even into Sunday," Mr Dixon said.

The monster swell was more measured along the shoreline, with average waves at Bells Beach between 3 and 5 metres.

Five beaches on Victoria's west coast between Peterborough, Port Campbell and the Twelve Apostles were closed because of the dangerous surf conditions.

Huge waves were predicted for competitors at Bells Beach on Friday afternoon. ( ABC News: Cameron Best )

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