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Corey Pavin held the upper hand on Ryder Cup counterpart Colin Montgomerie after the two captains played together in the China Open first round on Thursday.
European skipper Montgomerie sprinkled his round with six birdies but a pair of double-bogeys and two bogeys meant he had to settle for a level-par 72.
By contrast, Pavin was consistency personified as he mixed five birdies with 13 pars to finish three strokes off the pace on 67.
"I was pleased with the way I played," the American told reporters. "There were no bogeys and that was important for me.
"I played pretty solid, made a couple of key putts and hit a lot of good shots."
The highlight of Pavin's round was a burst of three birdies in a row from the third.
Despite his excellent performance the American was eclipsed by the third member of the group -- Thailand's Thongchai Jaidee who carded an eight-under 64 to finish alongside joint leader, Kim Do-hoon of South Korea.
All the players were confronted by unfriendly conditions at the Jinji Lake Golf Club.
The day started windy, with the temperature barely above freezing, thawed slightly around lunchtime but by the end of the afternoon the late groups were blowing into their hands and pulling their woolly hats down over their ears.
Pavin let the crowd know his displeasure when he missed a makeable putt at the par-four 16th.
The 1995 U.S. Open champion said later he always had to keep in mind that he was flying the flag for his country.
"I've travelled a lot around the world and I've played a lot of golf in different countries," said Pavin.
"Wherever I go I always feel like I'm representing America. That obviously applies even more so this week."
It will apply again when his U.S. team defend the Ryder Cup against Montgomerie's Europeans at the Celtic Manor course in Wales in October.
(Editing by Tony Jimenez. To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)
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