KUALA LUMPUR: Gavin Kyle Green ground out a decent one-under 71 to get his campaign at the CIMB Classic off to a positive start on Thursday.

The national number two shrugged off the effects of jet lag, mixing a card of one eagle, four birdies and five bogeys to lie tied-45th in the 78-player field.

Green, who only arrived back in Malaysia on Tuesday after his PGA Tour debut at the Safeway Classic last week, missed out on a practice round and it showed as he struggled to convert his chances on the greens at TPC Kuala Lumpur.

“I got off to a little shaky start but I kind of recovered well. Kept myself in play but I just missed a bunch of putts out there. I mis-read them and I think a bit of the jetlag kicked in at the end. Under-par is always good but with no practice round, it’s okay. Still got three more days. I’ll just stay positive and we’ll move on,” said the 22-year-old.

Green noted that he needs to improve his score on the par-threes, which at four-over was his only lowpoint of the day.

“I struggled a litle bit, mis-clubbed a couple and caught the wind a little bit on another, but it’s okay. I’ll get it tomorrow,” he added.

Danny Chia ©Mike Casper|TCH

Danny Chia’s driver woes continued to haunt the seasoned campaigner as he cut a frustrating figure with an opening 77.

“My driving has been a sore point over the last couple of weeks and there was no respite today. I’m struggling to find the center of the clubface and that translates to fewer fairways hit. Maybe I need to focus on my rhythm or tempo but I’m not feeling confident off the tees at the moment,” alluded Chia.