Matthew Stevens moved into Stage Two of Championship League Snooker by topping Group 25 on Wednesday in Leicester.
The Welshman compiled a break of 66 to wrap up a 3-0 victory over Haydon Pinhey in his initial round-robin affair, the latter playing in his first match as a professional player.
After that, Stevens appeared to be on track to keep his perfect record, but he missed a crucial last black against Farakh Ajaib, and the Pakistani player promptly sank it to tie the match 2-2.
Going into the third and final round of games, Stevens and Ajaib were tied for the lead in the group with four points apiece.
But after losing to Pinhey 3-0, Ajaib’s challenge swiftly dissipated, opening the space for Stevens to take advantage of.
With efforts of 97, 91, and 59, the former UK and Masters winner defeated the higher seed Robbie Williams 3-1, needing just one point to win.
Meanwhile, Ashley Carty, who has a perfect record of three victories from three contests, became the first contender of the week to go unbeaten.
At the Mattioli Arena, the Englishman dominated Group 31, dropping only one frame.
Carty began with 3-0 triumph over Mostafa Dorgham and followed it up with a 3-1 defeat of amateur top-up Simon Blackwell.
Elliot Slessor, the last opponent, had previously won two games against the same opponents, but Carty won their vital winner-take-all match with runs of 81, 59, and 53.
In the first ranking event of the 2024–25 season, Championship League Snooker will feature two additional Stage One groups on Thursday.
Group 23 is led by Stephen Maguire, a former world number two, who faces Ryan Davies, Dean Young, and Michael White.
Joe O’Connor will meet Harvey Chandler, Oliver Lines, and Aaron Hill in Group 22.