SCOTT Mitchell admitted it had been “massive” to get his BDO World Championship campaign off to a scintillating start after one of the best performances of the opening round.

The 2015 Lakeside winner took less than an hour to despatch Serbian qualifier Oliver Ferenc 3-0 at Frimley Green, averaging 94.64 in the process.

Mitchell kicked off by landing a 180 and never looked back.

Having won the first two sets without dropping a leg, the Dorset county star held his nerve in a tight third.

He told the BDO: “It was massive for me. I watched Oliver’s early games and every time he had a go at double, he hit it and he did it again today.

“I really scored big-time and I was conscious I had to do that to try to get in front of him.

“I have lots of really good memories from Lakeside but I’ve got lots of scars before that.

“You don’t feel you are in the tournament until you win that first game. I feel I’m part of the tournament now.”

Scotty Dog will face Poland’s Krzysztof Kciuk in the second round on Thursday.

Nicknamed ‘The Thumb’, Kciuk shocked Mortlake's Dave Parletti 3-1 with an average of 85.93 in the opening match of today’s afternoon session.