SHANGHAI - Graeme McDowell typically looks at the leaderboard more often at the start of a tournament. Austen Williams Nationals Jersey . It gives him a sense of how the course is playing and what score he might need to contend at the finish.There was no need to look Thursday in the HSBC Champions.McDowell noticed ankle-deep rough at Sheshan International and fairways not as wide as usual. He felt firm greens and saw trees jostling in stiff wind. More than anything, he kept looking at all the birdies that filled his scorecard.McDowell already had seven birdies when he finished his 12th hole, and a couple of loose mistakes at the end of the opening round didnt diminish his satisfaction. He opened with a 5-under 67 on a tough day in Shanghai to build a two-shot lead.No, I didnt need a leaderboard to let me know that 7 under through 12 is fairly strong, McDowell said. Gauging whats a good score can be a good thing maybe when youre not going well. But it might not be a great thing if youre taking it deep and the rest of them are 3-under par and youre thinking, Whoa, this is a very good score.Thats not what slowed him. Trouble was lurking everywhere, and not even McDowell was immune.Rickie Fowler also started quickly with three birdies in his opening five holes, only to spend the rest of the round trading birdies with bogeys. He wound up with a 69, along with U.S. Open champion Martin Kaymer, Brandt Snedeker, Chris Kirk, Tim Clark and Tommy Fleetwood.Strong wind added to the demanding conditions.Jordan Spieth began his new PGA Tour season with two straight bogeys and had to save par with a long bunker shot on his third hole. He scratched his way back and wound up in a large group at 70 that featured Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Adam Scott and Henrik Stenson, who made bogey from the bunker on his final hole.It didnt take much for players to stumble. FedEx Cup champion Billy Horschel made two double bogeys, only one birdie and shot an 80.This is a top event — some of the best players in the world, probably the best field youre going to get in Asia, and you dont want it to be a pushover, Fowler said. You want a good, solid test. And its showing that.Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask. had to withdraw after shooting 45 through his first nine holes because of a neck injury. It’s his third withdrawl in the last four months. He also withdrew from Malaysia last week with a sore neck.Only 27 players in the 78-man field broke par, compared with 37 players under par on the first day last year when the winning score was 24-under 264. McDowell said he wouldnt be surprised to see something around 10 or 12 under win, even if the wind lets up.McDowell is the only player this year to finish in the top 10 at all the World Golf Championships, and while he hasnt captured a WGC title, Sheshan International would seem to favour him more than the others. Thursday was his 10th consecutive round in the 60s on this course.A big key to this golf course is driving the ball well. I drove it very well today, McDowell said.The exception was on the 603-yard eighth hole, playing with the wind. McDowell hit a 3-wood to avoid the bunker on the right side of the fairway, and he put it in the deep grass for the first time all day. He could only manage an 8-iron out of the rough and still had 215 yards over the creek fronting the green. McDowell pulled that left of the green and failed to get up and down.No complaints. He did not forget the 20-foot birdie putt he made on No. 14, or the 45-foot putt he holed across the green at the 17th, or the 25-foot birdie on No. 3. And then there was his drive on the 288-yard 16th, a perfect yardage to go with a perfect swing that gave him a two-putt from 15 feet for birdie.There were some tricky holes on the front nine, McDowell said. I made a couple of putts I should have in the first 12 holes, and then I made a couple of bogeys that I shouldnt have coming in. All in all, I think 5 under was a fair representation of my round.DIVOTS: Kevin Stadler withdrew after two holes with a wrist injury. ... Jason Dufner had one moment when his body was in China and his head was still in Malaysia. Players were allowed to lift, clean and place their balls last week in soggy Malaysia. Dufner instinctively picked up his ball in the 18th fairway, a one-shot penalty. He had a 72. Just one of those things, Dufner said with a shrug. Nationals Jerseys China . After a first half in which he thought "the lid was on the basket," the Toronto Raptors coach watched his squad mount a second half surge to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 98-91. Victor Robles Jersey . He made another correct read. The Browns, who have been shuttling quarterbacks on and off the field all season, finally got some good news on that front: Campbells ribs are only bruised. https://www.cheapnationals.com/ . -- On any given day here at his companys Silicon Valley headquarters, Vivek Ranadive is ready to compete against any employee who wants to challenge him to any contest.RED DEER, Alta. -- Ivan Nalimov made 42 saves as Russia edged the Western Hockey League 3-2 in the Subway Super Series on Thursday. Nalimov was spectacular in the third period as he shut the door despite Russia being outshot 18-8. Alexei Baskov put Russia ahead for good 2:43 into the third period after first-period goals by Igor Rudenkov and Alexander Barabanov. The WHL opened the game with a goal from Griffin Reinhart just 45 seconds after the opening faceoff. Anthony Rendon Jersey. They later tied the game 2-2 on a short-handed goal by Taylor Leier in the second period. Eric Comrie finished with 22 saves for the WHL. Russia and the WHL finish the series Thursday in Lethbridge, Alta. Russia lost its first two games of the series to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League before winning two games against the Ontario Hockey League. ' ' '