Stuart Bingham and Barry Hawkins were among those to impress on Thursday at the Coral Welsh Open.
Bingham won all eight frames as he saw off first Ian Burns and then Robbie Williams to set up a quarter-final clash with Stuart Carrington, who only dropped one in his two matches.
Hawkins lost only the second frame of his afternoon clash with Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, but centuries in the first and fourth saw him beat Craig Steadman 4-0 in the evening.
Next for Hawkins is Judd Trump, who also lost just the one frame as he confirmed his status as tournament favourite after Mark Selby was beaten by Yang Bingtao in the morning.
Bingtao celebrated his 17th birthday in style by beating the world number one 4-1, a 99 break sealing the win, and while he would go on to lose 4-1 to Kurt Maflin he still managed a 136 break to further underline his status as surely the sport's most promising youngster.
Maflin had earlier beaten Mitchell Mann 4-2 and with two centuries on the day, it was a performance which will give him confidence ahead of a last-eight clash with Robert Milkins.
Scott Donaldson is another relatively unfamiliar name through to Friday's quarter-finals after he came from 3-2 down to beat veteran Mark Davis 4-2.
Davis had beaten Ronnie O'Sullivan on Wednesday night and picked up where he left off in the first session on Thursday, a 144 break setting him on course for a 4-2 victory over Fergal O'Brien.
However, Donaldson showed tenacity and poise beyond his 22 years as he continued his climb up the world rankings with one of the standout performances of his fledgling career.
Next for the Perth potter is Zhou Yuelong, who first eliminated Ross Muir before ending the hopes of local journeyman Lee Walker in a one-sided 4-0 win.
Thursday February 16
Afternoon Session (1200 GMT)
Third Round (Best of 7 frames)
TV Coverage: Eurosport 2
Mark Davis 4-2 Fergal O'Brien
Jimmy Robertson 0-4 Scott Donaldson
Zhou Yuelong 4-1 Ross Mur
Graeme Dott 2-4 Lee Walker
Judd Trump 4-0 Jackson Page
Ali Carter 1-4 Hossein Vafaei Ayouri
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 1-4 Barry Hawkins
Anthony Hamilton 2-4 Craig Steadman
Stuart Bingham 4-0 Ian Burns
Michael White 2-4 Robbie Williams
Dominic Dale 1-4 Igor Figueiredo
Stuart Carrington 4-0 Robin Hull
Josh Boileau 0-4 Robert Milkins
Mark Allen 2-4 Mei Xi Wen
Kurt Maflin 4-2 Mitchell Mann
Yan Bingtao 4-1 Mark Selby
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
Fourth Round (Best of 7 frames)
TV Coverage: Eurosport 2
Mark Davis 3-4 Scott Donaldson
Zhou Yuelong 4-0 Lee Walker
Judd Trump 4-1 Hossein Vafaei Ayouri
Barry Hawkins 4-0 Craig Steadman
Stuart Bingham 4-0 Robbie Williams
Igor Figueiredo 1-4 Stuart Carrington
Robert Milkins 4-2 Mei Xi Wen
Kurt Maflin 4-1 Yan Bingtao
