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Playing his first PGA Tour event since he missed the cut at the U.S. Masters in the middle of April, Garcia showed no signs of rust at the Quail Hollow Golf Club.

Having played the back nine first, the 25-year-old Spaniard stumbled slightly at the turn with bogies on the first and second but would make no more mistakes on a cool, windy day, erasing his two errors with a birdie at the fifth and ninth.

"It's a tough course," said Garcia. "The way it's playing, as firm as it is, as quick as these greens are, and with this wind that we're having, it's just a tough course. It's tough to hit the fairways, it's tough to hit most of the greens.

"I was just very happy that I managed to do that pretty well today.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not disappointed. I'm happy about the round, happy about the score.

"I probably only got 60 percent out of the round, so it could have been a lot better. But I'm still really happy about the way I played."

Sweden's Richard S Johnson and Americans Patrick Sheehan, Kenny Perry and defending champion Joey Sindelar -- who won in a playoff last year to end a 14-year title drought -- shared second place on four-under 68.

Jim Furyk, Andrew Magee, Jeff Maggert and Swede Jesper Parnevik were a further stroke adrift on 69.

Tiger Woods, back in action for the first time since winning the Masters, carded a 70 after beginning his round at the 10th.

Woods, who picked up his fourth green jacket at Augusta, was two-over after five holes before rallying with birdies at the 15th, first and second.

The world number one gained another stroke at the fifth but bogeyed the sixth and seventh before closing with two more birdies.    Continued ...

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