Ireland's Darren Clarke, the only European to capture one of golf’s World Championship titles, is in the hunt for another after a superb 65 in Akron.
On a hot and sultry day it was not quite enough for the Ulsterman to take the first round lead in the $6m (€5.5m) NEC Invitational, however.
Out in front are Open champion Ben Curtis – more concerned with his wedding on Saturday – and back-to-form Spaniard Sergio Garcia, both of whom came in with six-under-par rounds of 64.
Clarke has some illustrious company in third place after the opening day - world number one Tiger Woods, whose last three visits to the Firestone course have all ended in victory.
Woods, whom Clarke beat in the final of the 2000 Accenture World Match Play in California, would have shared top spot but for a bogey on the 400-yard 17th, where he missed from under six feet after coming up short with his approach.
Like Curtis, Clarke did not have a bogey on his card as he started his bid.
“I played very nicely,” he said. “I am not saying this course is easy, but it is a bit of relief after last week. That was brutal.” Clarke missed the halfway cut in the US PGA Championship at Oak Hill, as did Curtis and Garcia.
It was not the most promising of starts when he hit a tree with his drive on the 497-yard second and finished on the adjoining third fairway. But a 50-yard pitch to eight feet still enabled him to birdie the hole and he was off and running.
Further birdies came on the third, fifth, 10th and 12th and a massive drive on the long 16th gave him hopes of another.
The hole has been lengthened to an incredible 667 yards, but Clarke’s blow of just over 350 yards left him 276 to the front of the green and, even with water in front, he took a three-wood out of his bag three times and thought about going for it.
Eventually, because of the slightly downhill lie, he decided not to and was left wishing he had when he pitched into sand over the green. But he saved par and “scrambled” fours on the two closing holes.
Curtis, 396th in the world when he won the first major of his life at Sandwich last month, admitted he went out with an attitude of “good or bad I don’t care - this will be the best week of my life no matter what I shoot.”
The 26-year-old was referring, of course, to his marriage, which is set for 5pm in his home town a 30-minute drive from Akron. He might not be teeing off until around 2pm, though.
“I’m more nervous about my tee-time now,” he admitted. “Hopefully I am playing late, but at the same time I would like to be on time and everything to be on schedule.”
Woods showed his liking for the lay-out again from the time he birdied the second. It is now nine sub-70 rounds in a row on it and, even if he does not have a major to his name, he remains the man to beat.
Garcia eagled the second and then had four successive birdies around the turn to join Curtis. The 23-year-old had a bogey on the short 12th, but finished with a 20-foot birdie putt.
Phillip Price, who finished a distant second to Woods in 2000, would have been joint ninth but for three-putting the last.
It dropped him alongside Colin Montgomerie on 68, two better than Ireland's Paul McGinley and Lee Westwood, who was four under and joint leader with two to go early in the day and then triple-bogeyed the 17th and bogeyed the last.
His annoyance was mainly at his drive down the 400-yard 17th, which caught the top of a bunker – and stuck there.
“I pushed it a little bit right, it pitches in the face of the trap and when I get up there I can see about three dimples of the golf ball.”
Unable to get it out of the bunker Westwood then had a fresh air shot from the rough by the green.
Justin Rose and Paul Casey had 72s – Casey had to birdie the last two like McGinley for that – while Ian Poulter was critical of the sand in the bunkers as he shot 73 like father-to-be Padraig Harrington, who admitted he had thought about pulling out.
“I spent most of the day wondering whether it was time to go home,” said the Dubliner, whose wife Caroline was due on Monday. “But I think that would be wrong. This is a big tournament and it deserves respect.”
Nick Faldo managed only a 74, but that was still two better than fellow Englishman Phil Golding. In the field because of his French Open win in June, Golding had a triple bogey eight at the 16th.