Jimmy White took advantage of a bizarre incident in the sixth frame of his match against Hossein Vafaei to complete a 4-2 win and book his place in the last 32 of the Northern Ireland Open at the age of 62.
With the frame drifting towards the hour mark, Vafaei looked to have left himself in pole position to force a decider when he potted a long red after a misjudged safety from White had sent the cue ball into the bottom pocket.
However, referee Kevin Dabrowski called a foul, insisting Vafaei had not replaced the cue ball correctly inside the D, much to the surprise of both players, who tried to check the position by peering through the viewfinder of a nearby television camera.
However, Dabrowski remained adamant that his call was correct, handing the initiative to White, who duly wrapped up victory over the world number 24, extending a shock run that had seen him win two qualifying rounds just to reach the tournament proper.
"My game was there in parts, I potted some good balls," said White. "I still enjoy practising and exhibitions, I enjoy entertaining and I still make 147s.
"Now and again I have a little buzz where I can beat anyone. I am not as consistent as I was, but that will come with a few wins and that was a decent one for me today.
"Belfast is an amazing place, I have been coming here for a long time. There was the late, great Hurricane Higgins, Dennis Taylor, Joe Swail and now an incredible player in Mark Allen, so there is always great support here."
Earlier, Neil Robertson continued his strong recent form – and his bid to cement his place back in the world’s top 16 – as he edged a 4-3 win over Graeme Dott in a repeat of the 2010 World Championship final.
Robertson's victory at the BetVictor English Open last month was his first ranking title in over two years and boosted him to 16th in the rankings. But he must keep that place in the top 16 by the end of the International Championship to make sure of a seeding in York for the UK Championship, and then the end of that event will be the cut off for the Masters.
"I'm one of the few players in the world who can win those events multiple times," said the Australian after his victory in Belfast. "I know I'm in that small group who can get the job done so I want to be there. But I can't get ahead of myself, I have to push through and keep the momentum."
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