David Morris came from one down with two to play to beat Paul Davison 4-3 in the opening qualifying round of the Welsh Open.
After sharing the first four frames, recent German Masters qualifier Davison fired in a brilliant 137 break to go within one of progressing to the next round but Irishman Morris responded in kind with a 134 of his own to square the match up.
The Kilkenny cueist then got in early in the decider and protected his lead to edge across the winning line.
It is an important victory for Morris, who is languishing outside the top 64 places in the world rankings list that guarantees a return to the Main Tour for next season.
There is still time for things to be turned around but the 23 year-old will be aware that, at this stage of the campaign, every extra victory could prove vital.
Another pair of close encounters ensured that Daniel Wells and Kurt Maflin also advanced in final frame thrillers, over David Grace and Stuart Carrington respectively.
It is only Welshman Wells’ second victory in what has been a very difficult year as a professional following his European Amateur Championship success last June.
Young Englishman Sam Baird put in a confident display in his 4-1 triumph over the dangerous Passakorn Suwannawat – including an impressive 141 total clearance – while Adam Wicheard saw off Andrew Pagett by a similar scoreline.
Indian Lucky Vatnani reeled off the last three frames to beat teenager Sam Craigie 4-1 and elsewhere there were whitewash wins for Andrew Norman, Cao Yupeng and Yu Delu.
The qualifying event continues until Saturday where 16 players will join the elite top 16 in the first round proper that commences next Monday.
The full draw and list of results can be viewed by clicking here.
