The 63 was his best start of the year -- he opened with an 8-under 64 when he won at Doral in March -- and matched his best score of the year. Woods closed with a 63 to win the Deutsche Bank Championship early this month, the last stroke-play event he played.
The American Express Championship comes one week after the Ryder Cup, a draining time for the players from the US and Europe. Results were mixed for those who played. David Howell shot 66, joining Woods, Harrington and Cink among the leaders in the top eight.
"Thursday seemed to come around very quickly after the shenanigans of Sunday, and more importantly, Sunday night," Howell said. "I didn't feel overly prepared. But I got straight back into the swing of things."
Among those who failed to break par were Paul Casey (74), David Toms (73) and Colin Montgomerie (72).
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