Rory McIlroy dropped four shots in his first two holes but bounced back to finish the first round of the season-ending Tour Championship on seven under.
McIlroy started the day on four under and, after immediately giving up his advantage, got back on track thanks to five birdies in his final seven holes.
The world number four began his round with a triple bogey on the opening hole before a bogey on the second and two others on the fourth and ninth.
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But birdies on the third, fifth and and eighth helped his cause, along with an eagle on the par 5 sixth.
Further birdies came on the 12th, 14th, 15th, 16th and 18th, while he dropped a shot on the 13th.
It leaves the Hollywood man eight shots behind world number one Scottie Scheffler’s lead of 15 under at East Lake, Atlanta.
Scheffler took advantage of his 10 under start which was awarded for his accumulated points on the PGA Tour, and was at the top of the standings when the first round kicked off on Thursday.
Players start the Georgia event with their shot advantages determined by their place in the FedEx Cup standings.
Meanwhile, England's Matt Fitzpatrick who won his first major at the 2022 US Open, started on three under and shot an impressive six-under-par 64 to finish the day in third place.
American Xander Schauffele’s 66 put him second on 10 under, while Chilean Joaquin Niemann’s 64 left him on eight under. The latter was joined by the second-highest points earner, defending champion Patrick Cantlay of the US, thanks to a closing eagle for a 70.
British Open champion Cameron Smith, playing for the first time since the opening FedEx Cup playoffs event due to a hip injury, still managed a 67 and joined McIlroy at eight shots back.
Speaking after his round, McIlroy said: "Not the ideal way to start, but proud of how I bounced back from that. I would have been happy just to get back to even par after the first few holes, but to shoot three under was great."
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