As a kid, wanting to become pro, I remember my coaches always telling me:

"Surfing good waves is fun. But surfing good waves does not teach you to surf bad waves. While surfing bad waves teaches you to surf good waves really well."

I don't know if that's true, because I never came close to turning pro.

But, ripping in small crappy waves is always going to matter for those that wanna go next level, especially if it's competitively.