Former Embassy World Champion Ted Hankey is through to the second round of this year's competition.

But the seventh seed had to battle all the way on Sunday to beat Finland's Jarkko Komula 3-2.

Komula was unhappy he had not been told the match had been brought forward by two hours.

And the 25-year-old Lakeside debutant certainly started off shakily.

But once he had found his feet, the World Masters runner-up, who makes a weekly 1,000-mile round trip from his home near the Arctic Circle just to practice, gave `The Count' a run for his money.

Ultimately, the 33-year-old Rhyl-based player came through the deciding set comfortably, but the experience left a bitter taste with Komula, who had been tipped as a lively outsider for the title.

"I was very surprised when I was told I had to go on much earlier than I thought," said the world number nine.

"I could hardly throw a dart at first and I gave the first set away to Ted.

"I'm the sort of player who practises a lot and I've been practising for 12 hours a day since I finished runner-up at the World Masters in November.

"I'm very upset because I felt ready to win this tournament. I'm a newcomer and yet I get treated this way."

Hankey said afterwards: "I bashed him up in the first set but then he came at me. He's a very good player.

"I didn't think I played badly but not as well as I can. I need to tighten up a bit and not think about things too much."

Hankey will meet Wolverhampton's Wayne Jones, who just got the better of Middlesbrough's Tony Eccles 3-2.