Arjun Atwal carded a three-under par 69 to be placed tied 22nd after the first round at the USD 5 million HSBC Champions tournament, which commenced at the Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai on Thursday.
The Indian made five birdies and two bogeys in a round that he confessed should have seen him shoot a lower score.
"I am not complaining, but I should have had birdies on each of the last four holes from sixth to ninth. I wish I had dropped a few more putts," said Atwal.
Jyoti Randhawa, who defends his Volvo Masters title next month, bogeyed the last two holes and finished one-over 73 to be tied 51st after being caught in severe rain over the last five holes.
England's Nick Dougherty, Australia's Peter O'Malley and Scotland's Paul Lawrie shared the first round lead at eight-under 64 on a day when the golfers seemed to have the better of the course.
World number one Tiger Woods, who had the biggest gallery despite a slight drizzle over the last few holes, packed in 10 birdies but also had three bogeys including one on the difficult ninth hole, his closing one for the day.
Talking about his round, Atwal said "three-under for the first day was okay. The roughs were soggy because of the rain, but I wish I could have holed a few more of those birdie putts. There were some noticeable spike marks on the greens."
