Ken Doherty extended his unbeaten run in ranking tournaments to 12 matches with a 5-3 success over fellow Irishman Michael Judge at the stg£441,000 Regal Scottish Open in Aberdeen.
Doherty now plays Mark Davis or Mark King in his attempt to join an exclusive club of players who have won three successive ranking tournaments.
The only blip for the former world champion was a defeat by Steve Davis at the Irish Masters in Dublin earlier this month.
Otherwise Doherty has been in superb form, capturing the Welsh Open title in Cardiff and the Thailand Masters trophy in Bangkok.
"My main aim is to win trophies because that's the greatest feeling you can have," said Doherty, who has risen to world number four on the provisional rankings.
"It's nice to get a bit of consistency in my game because that's been lacking over the last couple of seasons.
"It certainly wouldn't bother me in the slightest if I was to win here on Sunday night even though the world championship is coming up next."
Welshman Matthew Stevens had earlier became the first player to reach the quarter-finals.
Last season's world championship runner-up brushed aside world number 11 Anthony Hamilton 5-0, though his modest best break of 57 did not come until the final frame.
World number six Stevens now plays John Higgins or Drew Henry tomorrow for a place in the semi-finals.