Ronnie O’Sullivan walked out during the first frame of his World Open match against Ross Muir because a sponsorship logo on his waistcoat appeared to be distracting him.
The “Rocket” was put off by the red advert stitched to the right side of his chest when lining up a black, midway through a break during his first-round match.
He briefly scratched at the patch in an attempt to remove it before exiting the auditorium, causing a delay of several minutes.
Muir was left confused in his seat until O’Sullivan returned, following some alterations, to claim the first frame on his way to a 5-1 win in Yushan, China.
Despite the irritation caused by his garment – he continued to fiddle with his waistcoat as the match progressed – O’Sullivan played well in his first tournament appearance since the World Grand Prix in early February.
The seven-time world champion, 50, polished off the victory against Scotland’s Muir with consecutive centuries.
The opening frame had already been temporarily interrupted by an insect landing on the cueball as Muir lined up a shot which he subsequently missed, allowing O’Sullivan in to take an early lead.
The Rocket produced a break of 83 in the second and was soon 3-0 ahead before Muir, the world No 109, pulled one back before the interval.
Yet O’Sullivan looked close to his brilliant best after that, coming close to an 18th career 147 break in the fifth frame, only to put the white down when potting the 15th black into the corner pocket.
And he then added another impressive break of 114 to seal a win that sets up a third meeting with Matthew Selt on Wednesday, having been afforded a bye because second-round opponent Ishpreet Singh Chadha has withdrawn.
O’Sullivan is in need of a good performance at the tournament to protect his world-ranking place in the lead up to next month’s World Championships at the Crucible. Owing to his recent inaction, he has dropped to 12th in the list.
Last month it was announced that he would be entering the World Seniors Championship later this year in an attempt to do a Crucible double.
Elsewhere, defending champion John Higgins progressed courtesy of a 5-3 win against Liam Highfield, while world No 1 Judd Trump was among those in action later on Monday against Mark Lloyd.
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