Mark Allen held his nerve when it mattered most to seal a 10-8 win over qualifier Jimmy Robertson in his first round match at the World Snooker Championship in Sheffield.
Allen delivered a match-winning break of 97 to secure his passage into round two.
The Belfast player held a 5-4 advantage overnight and it was again nip and tuck in the deciding session.
A break of 62 put Robertson in front 6-5 but Allen, a semi-finalist at the Crucible in 2009, drew level twice more before hitting the front 8-7 with a break of 66.
His opponent won the next frame before Allen went back in front following breaks of 25 and 38 and then notched that decisive 97 break in the 19th frame.
Watch | @pistol147 reacts to his 1st Round victory in the Betfred @WorldSnooker1 Championships #ilovesnooker pic.twitter.com/zZV8W7UalV
— Betfred (@Betfred) April 17, 2017
Elsewhere, Marco Fu produced a remarkable comeback to reach the second round after defeating Luca Brecel in a final-frame 10-9 win.
The Hong Kong cueman was trailing 7-2 after the first session but soon hauled it back to 8-8 in the evening session as the Belgian struggled for momentum.
Brecel took the next to leave him one frame from victory but the world number eight reeled off breaks of 85 and 56 to clinch the last two and seal his place in the next round, where he will face either Thailand's Noppon Saengkham or former Crucible winner Neil Robertson.
Contender for shot of the tournament right there!
— World Snooker (@WorldSnooker1) April 17, 2017
Absolute belter from @Marcofu18 in the decider! #ilovesnooker @Betfred pic.twitter.com/HmqXUPQ8AA
Stuart Bingham became the fifth player to reach the second round with a 10-5 defeat of another former world champion - Peter Ebdon.
Bingham led the 2002 winner 5-4 overnight and edged the opening frame on Monday morning.
It proved significant as the 2015 champion lost only one of the next five frames as he set up a match against Kyren Wilson.
The 2005 world champion Shaun Murphy made hard work with his first round clash with 17-year-old qualifier Yan Bingtao before eventually coming away with a 10-8 victory.
Ding Junhui took control of his all-Chinese affair against Zhou Yuelong, building a 7-2 lead in the earlier session.
