And after long craving more time at home, away from the hectic championship tour, Callinan admits the enforced stint - with solid waves to keep him busy - has been nice.

But the world No.14 is also keen to get back on tour and not waste his strong start to the year, which had him primed for the CT opener in March on the Gold Coast.

That event was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has also forced the postponement of contests at Bells Beach, Margaret River, G-Land in Indonesia and in Brazil. The World Surf League is aiming for a return in July, after the latest call to extend the suspension through June on Wednesday.

But like all competitions, the tour will need government restrictions to ease to have any hope of proceeding this year.

Before the suspension, Callinan was focusing on the CT but riding high on the qualifying series after finishing runner-up at home at Surfest and as a quarter-finalist at the Sydney Surf Pro to sit fifth on the second-tier rankings.

He's hoping that will still count, even if the rest of the year is lost to COVID-19.

"I was feeling the momentum build," Callinan said. "It was shaping up as a big one. It was a really good start to my year for requalification either way, just to have those points in the bag for the QS.

"I can only imagine how it will go, because they've got to keep it fair for the people who were doing so well. It's not like this year can go null and void for someone like [QS leader] Matt Banting, who absolutely crushed the start of the year.

"I'm sure they will figure something out ... maybe we get to keep our points for next year or for the back-end of this one.

"It was definitely disappointing not to keep that roll going. It was feeling good."

Unlike many countries, Australia has allowed recreational surfing to continue in the pandemic, and Callinan has capitalised.

"I think it's been really helpful to have that, because obviously it's a job but it's my passion as well, so it's a good release," he said. "I did get a bit worried there that they were going to close the beaches, so I tried to scramble and get a few more surfs in than I normally would and I burnt myself out a bit, but we've definitely been really lucky we've been able to keep surfing here."

The WSL also announced this week changes to the season structure in 2021 and a move to a final surf-off to decide the world champions. Finer details are to come, but the QS series is set to run before the CT starts, instead of concurrently.

"It's exciting to have a new format and it keeps everyone loose and open to what could happen," Callinan said of the surf-off.

"It was super exciting seeing the world title go down to the final last year in that one heat so I think that's what they want to try to emulate each year.

"It's still going to be a title race and it depends how they play it out, but coming into the last event there will definitely be different strategies that will play into it and I'm really interested."

Callinan has enjoyed his time at home but he was disappointed to miss out on competing, especially at Bells Beach and Margaret River, where he was a semi and quarter-finalist last year respectively to kick-start his return season on the CT.

"It's probably the longest time I've spent at home in at least five years," he said.

"I guess it's just been adjusting but it's been nice just to relax.

"Obviously I'd love to be out and about, and we'd be in West Oz now, and Bells would have been nice, but it's nice to be home.

"And we've been pretty lucky, we've had waves and here we're allowed to surf. It's kept me pretty busy.

"I had a ball at Bells and Margarets last year, and Bells was pretty special, so I was a bit disappointed not to head back down there, but it is what it is and there's nothing we can do about it. We're all in the same boat.

"It's been funny that I've had free rein to do what I want for a few weeks, and I just burnt myself out here anyway, because I was just so excited to surf and be at home. The waves were really nice as well.

"It's just adjusting. Normally I've got something to focus on and pull myself back for, a goal. Now it's a different aspect of having almost too much free time. I've got to keep motivated."

Callinan has been working out at home and he was ready to ramp up his training if and when a call came to resume competition.

"I've been doing it a bit on and off, but hopefully I can get a good solid month or so in before they make a call and I'll be good to go," he said.

AAP reports: The enforced shutdown of the World Surf League has fast-tracked the competition's shake up, with a grand final surf-off to decide the title from next year.

A "next call" on June 1 will shine more light on the likelihood of any events being held this season due to the coronavirus outbreak.

But WSL chief executive Erik Logan said the unexpected halt had also served as a prime opportunity to bring in changes that had been on the table for a number of years.

He said from 2021 the surf-off will take place on the final day of the men's and women's Championship Tour seasons at Pipeline and Honolua Bay, respectively.

Regular season performers will be rewarded courtesy of a seeding system, with Logan set to announce the finer details of the new format in July.

Two-time world champion Tyler Wright backed the new format, saying it will raise the intensity of the showdown for the crown.

"The difference is that you get to win in the water, which is huge," the Australian said.

"It comes down to nobody else, and that kind of intensity, that kind of competitive pressure, raises the bar. It's pretty exciting."

Last season's men's crown was fortuitously decided when the world's top two Gabriel Medina and Italo Ferreira met in the Pipe Masters final.

That heat broke viewership records and will now be a guaranteed scenario thanks to the changes.

"I was glued to Pipe last year on the last day," American pro Conner Coffin said.

"So it's a great moment for the sport and it's exciting to think that from 2021 onwards that will always be how the world title is decided."

The WSL also said the new Challenger Series, made up of eight second-tier Qualifying Series events for men and four for women, will run at a different time of year from the top-flight CT.

That will allow surfers who fail to requalify for the CT a chance to compete in the top-flight the very next season rather than waiting a full year in a system Wright said would give the sport's "up-and-comers" a better platform.

Logan said the remainder of the 2020 season was still clouded by uncertainty with the Rio Pro in Brazil, set for June, officially put on hold in the hope COVID-19 travel restrictions will ease in coming months.

The Championship Tour's Gold Coast opener set for March 26-April 5 has already been cancelled, while top-flight events at Western Australia's Margaret River, Victoria's Bells Beach and Indonesia's G-Land have all been postponed.

"Where and when we will run this year is still very much an open question, but we will continue to work with governments, world health authorities and our local communities on returning to the line-up," Logan said.