Hankey won his first round match of the 2008 BDO World Championship over Steve West 3–2. He twice found himself behind in the match, recovering from 1–0 and 2–1 down to win the final two sets in succession. Afterwards, Hankey attributed his erratic form to a minority of the crowd which had jeered him throughout the match. Despite this, his campaign for a second BDO world crown remained on course as he defeated Andy Boulton in the second round. He then lost in the quarter finals to Australian Simon Whitlock 0–5. Again, he expressed his disaffection with elements of the crowd for displaying poor order during the game. Midway through the contest, however, Hankey himself had received a warning from match referee Barry Gilbey, for punching the dartboard as this was deemed unsporting and contrary to the tournament promoter's code of conduct. After the match, an emotional Hankey informed the BBC's Ray Stubbs that he was considering quitting the game and needed to assess his future.