LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Arjun Atwal didn't exactly have high expectations as he drove across town to play in the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic.

The Orlando resident was coming off a missed cut, and he hadn't had a top-10 since he tied for eighth at the HP Byron Nelson Championship back in May. So Atwal, who Monday-qualified and won last year’s Wyndham Championship, was just trying to clear his head and play golf.

"It's been a mixed bag of everything this year, so when I started to hit it good, then I (started) putting really well,” Atwal said. "So today I didn't really have any expectations of trying to hit it, shoot low or whatever. Just whatever it gave me."

Turns out, the bogey-free 66 that Atwal ended up posting was good enough for a tie for the lead with world No. 1 Luke Donald and four other players. The 38-year-old from India hit 10 fairways and 16 greens while using just 29 putts in a solid start.

"Today I didn't think ahead of myself; I didn't think about anything," Atwal said. "Just one shot at a time, like they say, but it was actually happening. So it was good."