NORTON, Mass. — Jim Furyk thought his game was starting to turn the corner, and two solid days of practice made him believe even more. Even the evidence of low scores when he arrived at the TPC Boston didn't change his attitude.

Scott Verplank already was 5-under par through 10 holes. Steve Stricker was starting to hit his stride with five straight birdies around the turn, putting him atop the leaderboard.

"What I was going out there to do was keep myself in a good mental frame and just kind of stay out of the way, hit some good shots and build on it," Furyk said Friday.

The results were immediate at the Deutsche Bank Championship.

Furyk made a 15-foot birdie putt on the first hole, knocked in a pair of 6-foot birdie putts on the next two holes, then hit a driver that bounded on the green at the 294-yard fourth hole for a two-putt birdie.

He wasn't perfect, but he was close. Furyk missed only one fairway — barely — and hit all 18 greens on his way to an 8-under 63. It was his best round of the year, and two closing birdies were enough to tie Stricker for the lead.

Stricker played in the morning, also without a bogey, putting on quite a show for Tiger Woods to continue his strong performance in the FedEx Cup playoffs. Stricker finished one shot out of a playoff last week at The Barclays, and his opening round at the Deutsche Bank Championship was his 26th time under par in 37 playoff rounds since the FedEx Cup began in 2007.

Woods missed five birdie chances inside 12 feet. He twice had to one-putt for a bogey. One tee shot was so far into the woods that he had to take a penalty drop. The world's No. 1 player wound up with a 70, putting him in a tie for 48th.