Lakeside is now no sweat to Jamie Hughes

His third tilt at the organisation's top prize begins in the last game of tonight's evening session against Martin Atkins,

Hughes is the fourth seed for the second worlds in succession, after reaching the second round in 2015 and then the semi-finals last year, but his ambitions are growing.

December's delayed World Masters produced another semis run, losing to unstoppable best friend Glen Durrant by 5-0 sets whitewash.

It provided more 'Lakeside practice,' as this Masters was also held in Frimley Green. For Hughes, it also led to a moment of inspiration.

'Yozza' was wilting under the temperature of the lights and was perspiring accordingly, which was harming his throw. A trip to the on-site darts shop solved some of the problem, though.

He said: "I've struggled with the heat on stage before and, if your fingers get sweaty, it's hard to let go of the dart properly. You can end up flicking, pulling and pushing them all over the place.

"I remember the last worlds semi-final (against Scott Waites, lost 6-1), I was so hot that I went straight outside of the arena when we came off for the break.

"There's a little shop at Lakeside where you can buy a few bits and after the quarters of the last Masters (beat John O'Shea 4-2), I popped in there.

"I carry a bag of chalk everywhere with me now and I can rub that on my hands if it happens again. You'd be surprised at the difference it makes.

"The next time we were on stage (Finder Masters, Holland, the following weekend), I got to the final this time. Again, I lost to Glen (5-3 sets), but I felt more comfortable.

"I did well again in 2016, I also got to the semis of the World Trophy but I haven't got that big title win from the year that I wanted. I'm not a person who sets himself goals, but it would be nice.

"It's everyone's dream to become a world champion, but I just want to progress and become a better player. If it's meant to be, it will happen to me.

"I'm a big believer that the only pressure you have is what you put on yourself, but I know that I've got as good chance as anyone."

Hughes has stayed cool right up to heading off for Surrey this weekend, with a proper break over the festive period recharging his batteries.

It's back to business now, though, but competitive darts right up to the end of the Finder Masters, which he won in 2014 the month before his first worlds, should put him in good stead.

He said: "I've just been trying something different, by cramming all my practice into the last week before the tournament starts. I hadn't really put much preparation in up to then.

"All of this week, I've been on the board for two to four hours a day. Hopefully, I'll come in fresh off the back of the practice rather than stringing it out. We'll see what happens now.

"The three years have been polar opposites, I've put a bit more time in than I did last year but not as much as I did the year before.

"It's more about getting ready for that longer format, but we've had competitions with sets games coming up to the end of the year.

"With the Masters being at Lakeside, that should make the players that were there more comfortable for this than those who weren't."

Arguably the sternest of Hughes' trio of first round tests could await in Atkins, who was a quarter-finalist in 2012.

'The Assassin' will be taking in his 12th BDO worlds, two more than Hughes' last opening opponent, Ross Montgomery, who he whitewashed 3-0.

It's likely to be a late one this time, with the Black Country thrower and his Leeds-based rival taking to the oche for a first-to-three sets race from 10pm, live on BT Sport.

Hughes said: "It will be the same for my opponent, but I do like having that little bit more time to prepare. You don't have to rush and you can take your time.

"Hopefully, a late game will make the night better for me, because this will be a tough match. There isn't an easy draw, so you just need to concentrate on your own game.

"If you do that, you've got a better chance of winning than if you're thinking about who you are playing, but I know Martin well. He's a good guy.

"Martin is a great player, he's been an England international for years and he's got a great record for his country. He's been at Lakeside many times, so he's very experienced."

Hughes is in the top half of the draw, which splits in two when eight preliminary round winners join the 24 outright first round entrants.

The 30-year-old could end up paired next with Jim Williams, who has a first round rematch with Tony O'Shea after drubbing 'Silverback' 3-0 at the same stage last year.

Hughes nudged past Williams 3-2 in the second round of the last Masters, which saw the match go to a deciding set and last leg. It would be best-to-seven this time.

Three-time world title winner Martin Adams could await in the quarters, which is first-to-five, with last year's finalist Jeff Smith also in the mix.

BDO No 1 Durrant is the hot favourite to win the tournament and he cannot meet Hughes until the semis, with Martin Phillips likely to be in the Teesside darter's way after round one.

Paul Hogan, now of Basingstoke but born in Dudley, is a possible first round test for Phillips after the preliminary phase where he plays American Tom Sawyers.

Wesley Harms, who Hughes defeated 5-1 with an imperious display in the 2016 quarters, is a potential last eight clash for 'Duzza.'

Defending champion Scott Waites is in the bottom half of the draw, which means he can only play Hughes or Durrant in the final. 'Scotty 2 Hotty' ended both of their challenge's last year.

Hughes said: "Glen has beaten me a few times, but he's beaten everyone a few times. He's just so consistently good, he seems to punish every little bad dart you throw.

"It's one of them, if I turn up and he has an off night then anything can happen. He's not won everything yet, so it can happen.

"It's near enough the same seedings as the Masters, where me and Jim had a bit of a nail biter at the end. He's a top player and this would be the same stage.

"Him and Tony played each other in the first round last year and it's never easy playing Tony at Lakeside, because he's a big crowd pleaser and such a great bloke.

"I played Martin Adams in the World Masters semis a couple of years back and did my old trick, coming back to win the match. He's got the crowd behind him, too.

"Jeff Smith always seems to produce his best darts on that stage, I've beaten Martin Adams since and had a three-figure average doing it. I played really well, it was my highest in the BDO.

"Paul Hogan is the king of the qualifiers and you have to be a good player to come through them. He's not got his Black Country accent now, he sounds very southern!

"I'm normally a bit of a slow starter and struggle to get stuck in but, against Wesley, I went off straight away. I felt really comfortable and it went from there.

"Over that length of game, I'd consider that the best performance of my career. I haven't seen much of Scott on the circuit since that semi.

"He's hard to beat, he's so determined and never lets his head drop, he'll try to battle back even if you go a couple of sets in front.

"Whatever happens, I'll just be concentrating on what I've got to do and play my own game. The favourites don't always win, there can be shocks and surprises."