He came from behind to beat Justin Goodwin (Auckland) 25-21 in the quarterfinals of the 24th annual Speight's Invitation singles.
Kernaghan, who won the event in 1999, will face three-time winner Shannon McIlroy (Nelson) in this morning's semifinals.
''I battled like hell in the middle of the game,'' Kernaghan admitted, as Goodwin scored 11 shots on eight ends to lead 19-9 after 16 ends.
Goodwin was controlling the jack and had the edge over Kernaghan on the short ends but the game changed when Kernaghan scored two on the next end to grab the jack and control the game by playing long ends.
Kernaghan scored 16 points on the last 10 ends to win the game.
''Justin had me on the short ends but I got the better of him on the long ends,'' Kernaghan said. ''I knew that if I got my first bowl within 20cm it would put pressure on him and I managed to do it on every long end.''
It was a nostalgic return to the North East Valley club for Jamie Hill (Auckland), who outclassed Gary Lawson (Wellington) 25-8 to reach the semifinals.
His father, Neville Hill, was a member of the club in the 1970s and was one of the best players in the Bowls Dunedin Centre.
''In my younger years, Dad kept me in check and stopped me from getting too carried away with my bowls,'' Hill said.
''He taught me to play the game the right way.''
Hill (33), a green keeper at an Auckland golf club, is an experienced PBA bowler and has played in the finals in the United Kingdom on 12 occasions. His best performance was to reach the semifinals of the world indoor championships at Potters Field eight years ago.
Hill used this experience to keep putting bowls on the spot and outdrew the more dynamic Lawson.
''The conditions have been tricky in the last couple of days,'' Hill said.
''I don't stress out too much. I just had to find the line and play my bowl. It was as simple as that.''
Lawson admitted he was beaten by a better player on the day.
''Jamie's a good player and was at the top of his game,'' Lawson said.
''He is the fourth-best bowler in New Zealand.''
The game was even early, with Hill leading 9-6 after nine ends. Hill then took control with accurate draw bowls to score 13 points on the next seven ends to lead 22-6 after 16 ends.
Hill will meet Australian-based Mike Nagy (Taren Point) in this morning's semifinal.
Nagy was always in command of his quarterfinal against former New Zealand champion Sean O'Neill (Timaru) and won easily 25-12.
He scored points on seven of the first eight ends to lead 13-2 and never let go of his grip on the game.
It is the first time he has played in the Speight's Invitation Singles.
''I came here with no expectations of getting all the way through and I was the underdog and didn't have any pressure on me,'' Nagy said.
Commonwealth Games representative Shannon McIlroy has put himself into a position to win a record fourth title when he took control of his quarterfinal to beat Andre Smith (Havelock) 25-14.
He won the event in 2006, 2008 and 2012 and shares the record of three wins with Rowan Brassey (Auckland).
Smith led 10-7 after nine ends but McIlroy then found his line to score seven points on the next three ends to lead 14-10. He led narrowly 15-14 after 17 ends but then rammed home his advantage, scoring 10 shots on the last five ends.
Speight's Invitation singles
Semifinals draw
Jamie Hill (Auckland) v Mike Nagy (Australia); Shannon McIlroy (Nelson) v Mike Kernaghan (Dunedin) at 9.30am.
