Ted Hankey at the double for BDO worlds
Telford's Ted Hankey will be hoping a swift double-header can get him through the first round upon his return to the BDO World Championship.
The two-time Lakeside champion is back at Frimley Green for the first time since 2012 this weekend, but must first negotiate a preliminary tie.
Hankey, who lives in Aqueduct, will first toe the oche with David Cameron in the last match of tomorrow's afternoon session, writes Craig Birch.
His opponent should be there for the taking, on paper, having never won a match at the venue with this his third attempt at the prelims. The match will be broadcast live on BBC2 from 4pm.
Should 'the Count' vanquish the Canadian thrower in that clash, the 47-year-old will enter the first round where steady double semi-finalist Martin Phillips awaits.
The Welshman will take on the winner in the last meeting of Monday evening's session, live on BT Sport, with Hankey determined to make his mark on a familiar stage.
The disappointment of not making the previous world championship, failing to qualify by one point, now appears to be behind him.
He snuck in the competition through a 28th place finish for the year in the BDO world rankings, surviving a massive scare at the last ranking tournament before the worlds cut-off point.
Glen Durrant defeated surprise package Larry Butler 7-3 in the final of the World Masters to save Hankey's place. Butler was in the worlds either way, as the highest-ranked American qualifier.
But, had he won the Masters title, that would have been his entry point and US No 2 Jim Widmayer would also have made the cut.
Hankey lifted the trophy in 2000 and 2009 and still holds two Lakeside records. He hit 48 180s in 2000 while he's scored the first, second and third most maximums in one BDO worlds match.
