KUALA LUMPUR: Cueist Rory Thor is enjoying arguably his best start yet in a World Snooker Tour (WST) season after notching another creditable outing in a span of three weeks at the British Open.
The 36-year-old's run was ended in the last 16 by world No. 17 John Higgins of Scotland, losing 4-0 (72-6, 72-9, 55-19, 73-43) at the Centaur in Cheltenham.
Rory, a former Sea Games champion, can certainly walk tall following a memorable campaign that saw him oust some of the world's biggest names in the sport in the earlier rounds.
In the first round, Rory pulled off the biggest upset of the tournament by knocking out defending champion Mark Williams of Wales.
Rory won in emphatic fashion, thrashing the world No. 7 Williams 4-1 (56-50, 85-0, 65-40, 14-79, 71-47) to mark one of his biggest victories.
Rory continued his march with a nail-biting 4-3 win (74-14, 47-63, 67-7, 37-84, 81-0, 24-68, 89-49) against England's Mark Joyce before making heads turn once more by eliminating Australia's Neil Robertson, the former world No. 1 and world champion.
After trailing 3-1 at one point, Rory produced a stunning comeback to win the next three frames and register a 4-3 win (59-78, 65-16, 58-71, 58-68, 69-1, 90-0, 65-15).
However, Rory's hopes of advancing into the quarter-finals came to a halt when he found his match in Higgins.
By making it this far, Rory also equalled his career-best outing of reaching the last 16 in the Scottish Open last season (2023/24).
Rory can also afford a smile as his fine run netted him £9,000 (RM49,700).
The prize money earned is imperative to determine whether he will keep his WST card for next season (2025/2026).
Rory regained his two-year exemption via the Asia-Oceania Qualifying School last year.
Hence, he needs to finish in the top 64 in the world rankings at the end of the 2024/25 season in the middle of next year.
The latest earnings from the British Open should boost Rory's position from his current ranking of No. 81.
Earlier this month, Rory reached the last 48 of the inaugural Saudi Arabia Masters in Riyadh.
He went down to world No. 38 Jimmy Robertson of England and picked up £11,000 (RM60,700).
The Saudi Arabia Masters, with a prize purse of £2.3 million, is considered the "fourth major", complementing the traditional "Triple Crown" events comprising the UK Championship, Masters, and World Championship.
Rory will switch his attention to Northern Ireland Open, which begins tomorrow.