Seventh seed Grigor Dimitrov made quick work of American in a rain-interrupted first-round encounter on Monday night.
Dimitrov, a finalist at the Brisbane International in 2012, won 6-2 6-3 against the world No.33 to cap the day’s play.
The Bulgarian meets French veteran Nicolas Mahut in the second round after Mahut having won in three sets earlier on Monday.
In addition to Dimitrov’s runner-up effort in 2012, he was a semifinalist at this event in 2015 and a quarterfinalist last year, losing to Roger Federer on both occasions.