GMac makes good start in Shanghai

McDowell carded a two-under par round of 70 which included the monster eagle putt on the 13th hole, to lie five shots behind leader Luke Guthrie.

McDowell admitted he was fortunate to see his eagle putt go in.

“The eagle was nice,” he said.

“I knew I didn’t want to hit it long right there with my second shot and I kind of held my three wood up a little too much, and it crawled onto the front right edge.

“The putt was a good putt, but it was very fortunate to go in. It was probably going to be six or eight feet by, so it was a nice little bonus.

“Overall I’m pretty happy. I had five weeks off coming in here and didn’t really know what to expect.

“It was tough conditions, greens (were) firm and fast, and windy conditions. It was a case of hanging in there as much as possible.”

The Portrush native will play in three of the four events which make up the European Tour’s season-ending “Final Series”. He will play in the WGC-Champions Tournament next week, which also takes place in Shanghai.

He confirmed he will not play in the Turkish Open but will return for the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai in mid-November.

He hopes to challenge for the Masters’ title in Shanghai this weekend, which is the first leg of the £18m series.

“The leader (Guthrie) is seven under par, but level par is 14th so that sums it up really,” said McDowell.

“It’s a case of jockeying for position - try not to shoot yourself out of it right now, and stay in the mix.”