(CNN) -- Tiger Woods offered glimpses of a return to the form that secured him 14-major championships as he fired an opening round 68 at the Bridgestone Invitational.
Playing his first tournament for nearly three months after an injury lay-off, Woods finished day one in Ohio at two-under-par, six behind leader Adam Scott, of Australia.
With three birdies and just one bogey Woods looked in good touch in his first competitive action since he dropped out of The Players Championship back in May.
After his round he told Sky Sports: "I felt good today, I hit the ball really flush. The hardest part was to control my distance. It was fun.
"I've got much more speed and compression through impact and the ball is taking off. I was hitting numbers I haven't hit before."
Asked what he missed most about being away from the game he replied: "The competition, by far.
"I'm right there. Six back, three rounds to go I'll keep plugging forward and playing my way round the golf course. It's fun to be walking around pain free."
He fared much better than his playing partner, British Open champion Darren Clarke, who eagled the eighth hole but slumped to a seven-over round of 77.
Scott is one shot ahead of compatriot Jason Day, who finished the day on seven-under after a bogey-free 63.
American Nick Watney is third on five-under and nine players are a shot back on four-under, including Denmark's Thomas Bjorn and American Stewart Cink. Phil Mickelson is on three-under.
"I really enjoy playing against the best golfers in the world on the biggest stage," Day told the PGA Tour's official web site.
"I've always wanted to play on the big stage, and I'm finally here. I just want to keep the year going in the right direction. I don't want to go backwards.
"My putter was good all day. It felt like it was a boring kind of a game. It was down the middle, on the green, and every two or three holes was a birdie."
U.S. Open champion Rory McIlroy, who said on Wednesday he is close to renewing his card on the PGA Tour in America, matched Woods with a round of two-under.
On his potential return to the U.S. Tour he said: "It's something I've thought about, especially after winning at Congressional. I'd like to give it another go.
"Ninety-five percent of me wants to come over here, and it was just making sure everything is in place by next year to make sure that coming over here and playing is as easy as possible logistically, get a place over here and maybe spend three or four months at the start of the year here."
The world's number one and two players, English duo Luke Donald and Lee Westwood, finished with opening round scores of 68 and 67 respectively.
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