One of only two Australians in the field, Davis opened with a five-under-par 66 at the PGA Tour's Biltmore Championship in Asheville, North Carolina.
Davis had only three pars all day, mixing 10 birdies with five bogeys on the Jack Nicklaus-designed layout to wind up in a tie for ninth, just two shots off the first-round pace.
The two-time PGA Tour winner and 2017 Australian Open champion has endured an extraordinary slump, missing the cut in 10 of his last 11 events in the US.
From being in weekend contention at the Masters two years ago, Davis has spiralled down to No.371 in the world and sits 191st in the FedExCup rankings.
The 31-year-old conceded he'd become stressed out with the pressure and grind of trying to make a living on the PGA Tour.
But Davis has put himself in a great position to make the cut this week and boost his slim hopes of retaining his PGA Tour card, as has fellow Australian Karl Vilips.
Vilips is tied for 32nd after opening with a three-under 68.
Co-leaders Max Greyserman and Eric Cole shot seven-under rounds of 64 to kick off the inaugural Biltmore Championship.
They are one shot ahead of fellow Americans Chris Kirk, Ben Kohles, Jackson Suber, Peter Malnati and Canadian Mackenzie Hughes as the PGA Tour's FedEx Cup Fall series began at The Cliffs at Walnut Cove.
In Greyserman and Cole, the event has a pair of leaders ranked inside the top 100 in the world who nevertheless have yet to win a PGA Tour event.
They have come close plenty of times, with Greyserman owning five career second-place finishes and Cole collecting five top-threes. Both have also lost in tournament play-offs.
Greyserman, 31, made eight birdies in his round, including four in a row, in his first tournament since the Wyndham Championship five weeks ago.
He took two weeks off to spend time with his eight-month-old son and headed to New Jersey for a week of a little practice before taking two more weeks off to holiday in Italy.
"Maybe that's key," Greyserman said. "Don't practice and just have a good time and just show up here."
Cole, 38, carded eight birdies as well but his only bogey came on his finishing hole, the ninth.
The top 100 players at the end of the FedEx Cup Fall keep their tour cards. Finishing in the 51-to-60 range grants access to the first two Signature events of 2027.
with Reuters
11°C