Rex Hedrick (Aus)
5/11, 11/8, 11/6, 11/2 (66m)
Andrew Schnell (Can)
Rex Hedrick 6-11, 15-13, 11-3,
11-4 (63m) Joe Lee
Charles Sharpes (Eng)
11/7, 11/8, 11/9 (60m) [2] Joe Lee (Eng)
Leo Lands
Bankers Hall Club Trophy
Leo Au
survived a thrilling five-game battle against Germany's Raphael Kandra in
the final of the TAQA Bankers Hall Club Pro Am in Canada to become the
first Hong Kong winner of the PSA World Tour Challenger 10 squash event
celebrating its 11th year at the Bankers Hall Club in Calgary.
"In front of
another standing room only crowd, Au produced a gritty at times display of
squash which saw the match ebb and flow with each player seemingly taking
control only to have it removed from them," explained tournament promoter Bob
Ballinger, the club's Head Squash Professional.
"Despite the
fact that four of the five games score-wise were not close, do not be fooled -
as the rallies were long with great exchanges by both players using all areas of
the court in particular - each of them showcasing their amazing hands and front
court game.
"After 74
minutes of great all around squash, Au prevailed 11-5, 9-11, 4-11, 11-5, 11-3."
The triumph
marks 22-year-old world No47 Au's fourth PSA Tour title.
"So another
PSA event and amateur event is over for another year," added Ballinger. "Great
crowds throughout the week for both components of the tournament simply enhanced
what this event has evolved to become over the years.
"We look
forward to January 2014 and doing it all over again!"
Kandra Canters
Into Calgary Climax
Unseeded
German Raphael Kandra pulled off his third successive straight games win
in the TAQA Bankers Hall Club Pro Am when he beat Australia's Rex
Hedrick to claim an unexpected place in the final of the PSA World Tour
Challenger 10 squash event celebrating its 11th year at the Bankers Hall
Club in Calgary, Canada.
The
22-year-old world No83 from Essen upset Hedrick - ranked 23 places higher -
11-4, 11-8, 11-7 in 42 minutes to reach the fifth PSA World Tour title of his
career.
Left-hander
Kandra is already boasting his second final appearance of the year after
finishing as runner-up to Jens Schoor in last week's Rocafort Open
in Spain - in the first ever all-German Tour final.
Kandra now
faces his toughest test against the event's top seed Leo Au.
But the world
No47 from Hong Kong took longer to earn his place in the final - needing 53
minutes to overcome fourth-seeded Australian Matthew Karwalski 11-7,
11-7, 11-8 in the other semi-final.
The
22-year-old Au is marking his eighth PSA Tour final appearance.
Runner-up last
year at the Bankers Hall Club, Au will be aiming to go one better this year and
become the event's first ever Hong Kong champion.
Hedrick Lops
Lee In Bankers Hall Upset
Unseeded
Australian Rex Hedrick secured a surprise place in the semi-finals of the
TAQA Bankers Hall Club Pro Am after ousting No2 seed Joe Lee in a
shock four-game victory in the PSA World Tour Challenger 10 squash event
celebrating its 11th year at the Bankers Hall Club in Calgary,
Canada.
Englishman
Lee, ranked 42 in the world, took the opening game - but the 24-year-old from
Melbourne survived a lengthy tie-break game to draw level, then forged ahead to
record an impressive 6-11, 15-13, 11-3, 11-4 win after 63 minutes.
Hedrick, the
world No60, will now face fellow non-seed Raphael Kandra following the
22-year-old German's 11-5, 11-7, 11-8 dismissal of Graeme Schnell, the
local wildcard player who hit the headlines 24 hours earlier by removing the
event's third seed Jan Koukal.
Fourth seed
Matthew Karwalski provides Australian interest in the other semi-final. The
New South Wales 27-year-old eased into the last four after his Mexican opponent
Alfredo Avila retired injured after just a single game.
Karwalski will
take on top seed Leo Au after the world No27 from Hong Kong overcame
Canadian Dane Sharp 11-8, 4-11, 11-8, 11-8 in a 77-minute marathon.
Schnell Shocks
Koukal In Calgary
There were
mixed fortunes for the Schnell siblings in their home hometown of Calgary
where PSA World Tour regular Andrew Schnell went down in four
games to Australian Rex Hedrick, but older brother Graeme Schnell
- ranked outside the world top 300 - upset third seed Jan Koukal to claim
a shock slot in the quarter-finals of the TAQA Bankers Hall Club Pro Am
at the Canadian city's Bankers Hall Club.
Schnell
senior, in only his second year on the PSA Tour, is the wildcard player in the
PSA Challenger 10 squash event celebrating its tenth successive year.
The
24-year-old twice came from behind to topple Koukal, the Czech number one ranked
56 in the world, 8-11, 13-11, 9-11, 11-6, 11-3 in 81 minutes.
Andrew, the
world No85 who himself upset Koukal at the same stage in last year's event
before going on to make the semi-finals unseeded, took the opening game against
Hedrick before the world No60 from Melbourne fought back to win 5-11, 11-8,
11-6, 11-2 in 66 minutes.
"Haven't been
this disappointed after a loss in a long time," tweeted Schnell junior later.
"Definitely need to reevaluate some things. Happy my bro won though."
Dane Sharp
doubled the domestic interest in the last eight round when he beat fellow
Canadian Michael McCue 8-11, 13-11, 11-4, 11-13, 11-9 in a 93-minute
marathon.
The
28-year-old from Toronto goes on to face Leo Au, the top seed from Hong
Kong who received a bye in the first round.
