Despite a bogey on the last hole, Rod Pampling was pleased with his British Open first round of one-under-par 70 that put him just one shot behind world No.1 Tiger Woods at a bitterly cold Carnoustie.

Pampling, who infamously missed the cut the last time The Open was played at the Scottish links course in 1999 after being the first-round leader, had a good start with birdies on the third and sixth holes.

He hit a bogey on the par-four 12th, but recovered with a birdie on the next hole and then had four pars before dropping a shot on the 18th.

"I was very close to having a nice lie but it wasn't worth risking it so we just laid up the fairway and I unfortunately missed a putt," he said of the last hole.

"It was nice to get in under par for the first round of the tournament."

The world No.36 said he had not given much thought to his second-round slide of 1999.

"Not today, I guess it's supposed to cross my mind tomorrow," he said with a wry grin.

"But I'm not really that worried about that."

The 37-year-old Queenslander went off in the sixth of 52 groups.

Woods missed a birdie putt on the first hole, but made one on the par-four third.

He shot an eagle with a monster drive and a six-metre putt on the par-five sixth to move to a share of the lead with Korean KJ Choi as New Zealand's Michael Campbell dropped a shot to slip to equal third.

Choi took the outright lead with a birdie on the par-three 13th and Woods had a bogey on the par-three eighth after hitting his tee shot into a bunker, but immediately picked up a shot with a birdie.

Woods bogeyed the 12th and 13th before a birdie on the par-three 16th for his score of 69.

Campbell finished with a three-under 68, while Choi - like Pampling - bogeyed the last for a two-under 69.

Geoff Ogilvy ran into difficulty with a triple bogey on the par-four 10th that proved troublesome for several players, including fellow Australian Stuart Appleby, who had a double bogey and then a bogey on the par-four 12th.

Adam Scott also struggled, with bogeys on the 10th and 11th taking him to four over, but he recovered with birdies on the 14th and 17th for two-over 73.

Compatriot Peter Fowler had two birdies and two bogeys on the inward nine for a three-over 74 after a poor start in which he bogeyed the second and had a double bogey on the third.

Appleby also finished on 74, while Geoff Ogilvy stumbled to 75.

Ireland's Paul McGinley blitzed his way to six-under-par before two bogeys in a row brought him back to four-under with two holes to play.

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