Avondale, La. ? Chris DiMarco got off to a fast start in his first event since losing the Masters in a playoff, shooting a season-best 7-under 65 Thursday for a share of the first-round lead in the Zurich Classic.

India’s Arjun Atwal also opened with a 65, birdieing six of his final nine holes on the TPC of Louisiana, the Pete Dye-designed course in its first year as the tournament site after 16 years at English Turn.

DiMarco, coming off an emotional first-playoff-hole loss to Tiger Woods three weeks ago at Augusta National, had a bogey-free round in swirling wind gusts.

“As long as I’m hitting the ball as solid as I’m hitting it, it really doesn’t matter if you play in the wind or not,” DiMarco said. “My irons are very crisp, and when you hit crisp iron shots, the wind doesn’t affect them as much.”

DiMarco, who started the round on No. 10, had three birdies on the first nine holes. He reached 4-under with a birdie on No. 1, made five straight pars and holed a 20-foot eagle putt on the par-5 seventh. He closed the round with a birdie on No. 9.

Defending champion Vijay Singh was in a group at 67. J.J. Henry, Tom Pernice Jr. and Tim Clark also shot 67s.