RESULTS: PSA International 25 KIG Open, Los Angeles, USA
Semi-finals:
Julian Illingworth (USA) bt Ryan Cuskelly (AUS) 13-11, 13-11, 7-11, 11-7
[2] Jonathan Kemp (ENG) bt Stefan Casteleyn (BEL) 11-8, 12-10, 11-7
Final:
[2] Jonathan Kemp (ENG) bt Julian Illingworth (USA) 11-7, 11-8, 7-11, 7-11, 11-6
Kemp Crowned KIG Champion
England’s Jonathan Kemp celebrated a dramatic title triumph in the KIG Open in Los Angeles where he beat home hope Julian Illingworth in a five-game final of the PSA World Tour International 25 event in its second year at the Los Angeles Athletic Club.
The second seed from Halifax disappointed the local crowd in the semi-finals when he ended the brave run of club coach Stefan Casteleyn, the 37-year-old former world No7 from Belgium who reached the last four after upsetting Egypt’s fourth seed Omar Abdel Aziz in the previous round.
And unseeded Julian Illingworth reached the 13th PSA World Tour final of his career when he despatched Australian Ryan Cuskelly in the other semi. The New Yorker had made his breakthrough in the opening round where he ousted Shahier Razik, the top seed from Canada.
Left-hander Kemp, the world No22, opened up a two-game lead in the final before Illingworth, ranked 12 places lower, battled back to draw level.
But Kemp stuck to his guns and reclaimed control of proceedings before closing out the match 11-7, 11-8, 7-11, 7-11, 11-6.
The triumph marked the 12th PSA Tour title of Kemp’s career – and his third in the USA.