Last year's runner-up Graeme Dott held off a fightback by Mark King to win 10-7 and clinch a second-round match against Ali Carter.
Dott, from Larkhall, began the session 6-3 ahead and stretched his lead to 7-3 before King started his revival with a break of 138, the highest so far in this year's championship and his Crucible best, beating the 137 he made in 2001.
King came back to trail just 7-6, but 2006 champion Dott pulled away once more to oust the Romford potter.
And King believes Dott could do well again this year. He said: 'You can't get to three finals and win one without being any good. I think he's a great player and very underestimated.'
Dott explained he had been struggling with his game, but all it took was to arrive in Sheffield for his performance to turn around.
'I love playing here,' he said. 'I played at the Scottish Professional Championship a few days before coming down here and couldn't pot a ball.
'Then I arrived at the Crucible and everything clicked. As soon as I came into the arena I played pretty well.
'I don't know what it is, I just seem to like playing here.'
Meanwhile, Rory McLeod, the 40-year-old from Wellingborough who coaches Qatar's national team to supplement his earnings from playing, reached the second round for the first time with a painstaking 10-6 victory over Ricky Walden.
The play was so slow yesterday that McLeod and former Shanghai Open champion Walden had to be hauled off at 4-4, rather than play the usual nine frames in a session.
They went into overtime again today when the 16th frame ran on for 53 minutes, delaying the afternoon matches.
McLeod eventually won it, after Walden left him an easy blue. Walden inadvertently potted the pink when attempting to play safe, ending a battle which had lasted seven hours and 16 minutes.
Dott, from Larkhall, began the session 6-3 ahead and stretched his lead to 7-3 before King started his revival with a break of 138, the highest so far in this year's championship and his Crucible best, beating the 137 he made in 2001.
King came back to trail just 7-6, but 2006 champion Dott pulled away once more to oust the Romford potter.
On the ball: Graeme Dott on his way to victory over Mark King
Dott explained he had been struggling with his game, but all it took was to arrive in Sheffield for his performance to turn around.
'I love playing here,' he said. 'I played at the Scottish Professional Championship a few days before coming down here and couldn't pot a ball.
'Then I arrived at the Crucible and everything clicked. As soon as I came into the arena I played pretty well.
'I don't know what it is, I just seem to like playing here.'
Take your time: Ricky Walden's match with Ricky McLeod lasted over seven hours
The play was so slow yesterday that McLeod and former Shanghai Open champion Walden had to be hauled off at 4-4, rather than play the usual nine frames in a session.
They went into overtime again today when the 16th frame ran on for 53 minutes, delaying the afternoon matches.
McLeod eventually won it, after Walden left him an easy blue. Walden inadvertently potted the pink when attempting to play safe, ending a battle which had lasted seven hours and 16 minutes.
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