Woods made six birdies Thursday to account for his mistakes and opened with a 2-under 68 at the Bridgestone Invitational. He was still four shots behind Marc Leishman of Australia, who shot 64 on a perfect day for scoring at Firestone.
Justin Rose was among five players at 65, while 27 players in the 76-man field at this World Golf Championship broke par.
It was only a first step for Woods. He opened with a 69 at the British Open two weeks ago, and then made the cut on the number.
British Open champion Rory McIlroy made a late double bogey in his round of 69.
