Australian surfer Julian Wilson has tasted defeat in the men's final of the Margaret River Pro, going down to Hawaiian Sebastian Zietz in a gripping final.

Wilson led for most of the final before Zietz pulled ahead in the closing minutes to record a narrow win.

Zietz recorded a combined two-wave score of 17.40 to trump Wilson's 16.67 and snatch the $100,000 winner's cheque.

The win is Zietz' first on the World Surf League Championship Tour, and lifts him to second in the 2016 rankings behind Australian Matt Wilkinson.

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Both surfers notched up good scores early in the final, with Wilson carving out a decent lead before conditions went flat for a period.

The Australian looked set to hold on before Zietz secured the win with a thrilling last wave in the final five minutes.

"The pressure was on and I pulled that last manoeuvre in the whitewater and made it," Zietz said.

"I'm stoked. To win was definitely the goal I'd set for a long time.

"It was an amazing contest. We had killer waves and good wind. Western Australia in general is epic."

The win caps a remarkable return from uncertainty for Zietz, who dropped off the tour last year after failing to requalify.

However he said he would be happy to remain second in the rankings.

"I don't think I'd like that pressure of being number one. It's better to be sitting in second place, like a ninja just waiting to strike at the right moment," Zietz said.

When asked what he would do with the prize money, he joked he might "go spend some of this on the pokies after I have a good cappuccino".

'Seabass out-surfed me': Wilson

Wilson remained upbeat despite the close loss, electing to stay and sign autographs for the large crowd before joining Zeitz on stage for the award ceremony.

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"It's tough, a close loss like that late in the final," Wilson said.

"We both had some good opportunities, but ultimately Seabass out-surfed me. I'm happy with the result though."

The result leaves Wilson lying seventh in the championship rankings.

Earlier, he overcame fellow Australian and former world champion Joel Parkinson in the first semi-final with a combined score of 16.60 against his compatriot's 15.50.

Zietz knocked off Brazilian Italo Ferreira in the second semi-final.

Organisers had the option of moving competition for the men's finals to a nearby wave called The Box, but opted to remain at the primary venue of Mainbreak.

Tyler Wright wins women's final

Conditions at Margaret River continued to build throughout Friday's women's final, with Australia's Tyler Wright beating US surfer Courtney Conlogue with a solid combined score of 18.67.

Wright's path to the final also saw her defeat current world champion Carissa Moore and former six-time title holder, Stephanie Gilmore.

The win narrows the gap on the title rankings with Conlogue just out in front by 800 points.

The win is the second for Wright this year, having also won the season opener on the Gold Coast.

She said the final against Conlogue was a game of strategy.

"I knew Courtney was just dropping nine point rides every heat so I knew I had to be smart in selecting my waves and turns and not get over-excited," Wright said.

"Every wave I had felt dreamy. The event was easy for me, no massive mental challenges, so I was really stoked on that and the happy headspace I've been in."

The tour now moves to Brazil.