Stephen Hendry and Steve Davis both won matches on the deciding frame to progress to the last 16 of the Royal London Watches Grand Prix in Glasgow.
Hendry, winner of the title on four occasions, battled his way to a 5-4 victory over qualifier David Gilbert at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre, while fellow veteran Davis, a three-time champion, triumphed by the same scoreline against Australia's Neil Robertson.
Breaks of 69, 70 and 98 helped Hendry progress, but the world number six found life tough in his first-round match on home soil.
Gilbert, a former part-time potato farmer from Tamworth in Staffordshire, fought back from 2-0 and 4-3 down to force a decider - and the world number 43 even missed a chance of a maximum 147 clearance.
The 27-year-old broke down on a break of 88 in the eighth frame having potted 11 reds and 11 blacks.
If he had gone on to make the 65th maximum in snooker history a cheque for £24,000 would have likely headed his way for the highest-break prize.
‘I'm very relieved to get my first win of the season,’ admitted Hendry. ‘I've had a slow start to the season and, when you're not getting the wins, panic starts to set in a little bit.
‘I was just thankful David gave me the chance in the last frame - he left me a pot on a blue ball over a corner pocket. I was delighted to get through.’
Hendry added: ‘At times I felt really good. I made a couple of nice breaks, I potted some good long balls and made some good safety shots.
‘But it's just the unforced errors which come when you're lacking confidence.’
Gilbert had match breaks of 123 and 88, but was understandably disappointed to have squandered a golden chance of upsetting the seven-times world champion.
‘I chucked it away, I should have won,’ reflected Gilbert, who led Hendry 5-1 at the 2007 World Championship before the Scot staged a comeback to triumph 10-7.
‘I started badly, but when I got back to 2-2 I really fancied my chances. I felt good out there but I played some slack shots and made too many errors.
‘I want to be at the venues and I want to be beating the top players, but I've got to sharpen up.
‘If my focus was a bit better and my safety was sharper, then I would have won that match.’
Meanwhile, Davis kept his composure to edge into the next round after his match with Robertson, twice a ranking event winner, dragged on for over four hours.
'The Nugget' mustered a top break of just 43, but said: ‘That's a big scalp for me.
‘I was like granite out there, I had to be because neither of us played great.’
A new random draw is being used at this year's event and Davis added: ‘It's a much better format than last year, the group format didn't really work.
‘A knockout style draw is good fun. It's great because there's a good chance a dark horse can come through and win this event.’
