Aaron Hill is now two wins away from a debut at the Crucible after finishing off his decidedly one-sided qualifier against Haris Tahir this afternoon.
The Cork man held a 9-0 lead overnight after knocking in a century, and four further breaks over 50 in a dominant display.
And he didn't waste much time today at the English Institute of Sport, taking the frame he needed at the first attempt to complete the whitewash. Next up for the 23-year-old is a meeting with 2020 semi-finalist Anthony McGill, starting on Saturday morning.
Hill's ranking means that he entered the qualifiers in the second round, but he's never gone further than the third round in previous Crucible attempts.
Last night, Ken Doherty booked his place in the second round of the qualifiers, finishing off Haydon Pinhey 10-3.
Like Hill, he took a 9-0 lead into the concluding session, having looked sharp early on, and he eventually won the frame he needed with a break of 59.
The Dubliner recently changed cue for the first time in his career, ditching the one he had bought when he was a teenager. The old cue, which he paid £2 for in Jason's in Ranelagh, was the one he used to win the 1997 World Championship.
"I've been thinking about changing cue for a while," he told WST.tv afterwards.
"I just thought, what have I got to lose? I just felt I was losing the power in my old one. I got this one made, there is a lot more power and I'm happy with it."
Doherty will face a much tougher task in his next match, which starts on Friday afternoon, with world number 58 David Lilley standing in his way. Doherty's record against the Englishman is good, having won both of their previous contests on the tour.
But the 55-year-old, who had won just two matches all season coming into this week, did hint that the time he has with new cue on tour might be short.
"To qualify would be amazing. I think if I did it that would be the final farewell. The Crucible and I have had a long romance together, I love going there and I love the World Championship."
Hill and Doherty are looking to become the first player from the Republic to qualify for the game's biggest event since 2017 when Fergal O'Brien made it to the first round proper.
Doherty last played at the World Championships in 2014 when he reached the last 16.
Elsewhere, Antrim duo Robbie McGuigan and Jordan Brown were also in qualifier action today. McGuigan was beaten 10-7 by Mark Davis while Brown secured his progress with a 10-6 defeat of Farakh Ajaib.
