RESULTS:    Top End Squash Open, Darwin, Australia

Men's 1st round:
[1] Scott Arnold (AUS) bt [Q] Rex Hedrick (AUS) 11-7, 11-5, 11-4
[7] Mike Corren (AUS) bt [Q] Peter Taylor (AUS) 11-5, 11-5, 11-8
[3] Matthew Karwalski (AUS) bt Steven Robinson (AUS) 8-11, 11-4, 10-12, 11-3, 11-6
[5] Steve Finitsis (AUS) bt Jacob Alexander (AUS) 12-10, 11-6, 11-9
Nathan Stevenson (AUS) bt [8] Justin Beard (AUS) 11-5, 11-4, 11-3
[4] Zac Alexander (AUS) bt Nathan Turnbull (AUS) 11-4, 16-14, 11-5
[6] Max Lee (HKG) bt [Q] Luke Forster (AUS) 12-14, 11-6, 11-3, 11-7
[2] Dick Lau (HKG) bt [Q] Sam Miller (ENG) 11-9, 11-3, 2-11, 11-4
    Quarter-finals:
[7] Mike Corren (AUS) bt [1] Scott Arnold (AUS) 11-7, 11-4, 5-11, 11-8
[3] Matthew Karwalski (AUS) bt [5] Steve Finitsis (AUS) 11-13, 11-9, 11-7, 11-8
[4] Zac Alexander (AUS) bt Nathan Stevenson (AUS) 11-1, 11-9, 11-1
[6] Max Lee (HKG) bt [2] Dick Lau (HKG) 10-12, 11-6, 9-11, 11-3, 11-8
    Semi-finals:
[7] Mike Corren (AUS) bt [3] Matthew Karwalski (AUS) 7-11, 11-9, 11-7, 11-8
[6] Max Lee (HKG) bt [4] Zac Alexander (AUS) 7-11, 11-8, 14-16, 11-5, 11-4
    Final:
[6] Max Lee (HKG) bt [7] Mike Corren (AUS) 8-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-8

Women's 1st round:
[5] Amanda Cranston (NZL) bt Selena Shaikh (AUS) 11-2, 11-1, 11-2
[3] Melody Francis (AUS) bt Josefa Bertilsson (SWE) 11-3, 11-6, 11-5
[8] Maggy Marshall (AUS) bt Tamika Saxby (AUS) 7-11, 14-12, 11-8, 11-6
[6] Misaki Kobayashi (JPN) bt Alma Kushartanti (AUS) 11-5, 11-2, 11-3
[4] Zoe Petrovansky (AUS) bt Christine Nunn (AUS) 11-7, 15-13, 6-11, 11-1
Samantha Davies (AUS) bt [7] Sarah Cardwell (AUS) 11-6, 11-9, 13-11
    Quarter-finals:
[1] Donna Urquhart (AUS) bt [5] Amanda Cranston (NZL) 11-7, 10-12, 11-4, 11-2
[3] Melody Francis (AUS) bt [8] Maggy Marshall (AUS) 11-4, 11-4, 10-12, 13-11
[6] Misaki Kobayashi (JPN) bt [4] Zoe Petrovansky (AUS) 11-9, 11-7, 11-2
[2] Amelia Pittock (AUS) bt Samantha Davies (AUS) 11-9, 14-12, 11-5
    Semi-finals:
[1] Donna Urquhart (AUS) bt [3] Melody Francis (AUS) 11-5, 10-12, 11-1, 11-8
[2] Amelia Pittock (AUS) bt [6] Misaki Kobayashi (JPN) 11-2, 6-11, 13-11, 11-9
    Final:
[1] Donna Urquhart (AUS) bt [2] Amelia Pittock (AUS) 9-11, 11-8, 8-11, 11-4, 13-11


Hong Kong’s Max Lee and Australian Donna Urquhart took the honours at the Top End Open squash tournament at the Darwin Squash Centre in Darwin, the first event on the 2009 Australian professional tour.

Urquhart claimed the fourth title of her career when she downed fellow countrywoman Amelia Pittock in the final of the $6,000 WISPA World Tour event 9-11, 11-8, 8-11 11-4, 13-11.

The 22-year-old from Yamba in New South Wales had been suffering from the flu all week and was still not feeling 100 per cent heading into the final.

But the left-hander recovered enough to withstand everything Pittock threw at her, clinching a hard fought match to claim her second title of the year following her success in the Australia Day Challenge in Brisbane in January.

Urquhart looked down and out when she faced two match balls in the fifth game, but she hung in and saved both before claiming the narrowest of victories.

"I don’t know how I won that," she said later.  "There was one match ball when I just threw my racket out and closed my eyes and I thought I was gone.  I couldn’t believe it when I saw the ball coming back and the rally was still going."

In the final of the men's $7,000 PSA World Tour championship, 21-year-old Max Lee ended the run of New Zealand-based Australian Mike Corren with a four-game victory.

Sixth seed Lee recovered from losing the first game to a player 14 years his senior to win the biggest title of his career, taking the match 8-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-8.

The win - the second Tour title of Lee's career, but his first on foreign soil - was the culmination of a highly successful week for the Hong Kong underdog who beat second-seeded compatriot Dick Lau in the quarter-finals then downed fourth seed Zac Alexander in the semis.

"After I played Dick I was very, very tired, and it was the same after I played Zac," Lee said.  "Today I tried to slow the game down, but I was still very tired.  I think the hot conditions suited me – the ball was very bouncy in the back court and I could keep the points going."

Corren, the No7 seed, said he had peaked in his quarter-final win over top seed Scott Arnold and had slipped in the semi-finals and the final.

“I think with all the training behind me I should have risen to the challenge,” said the 35-year-old, celebrating his 30th Tour final.  "It’s really a matter of keeping the form going for the whole tournament -- you’ve got to be able to play four good matches in a row."