Five Australasians will take their place in the prestigious Japan Open this week as the Tour enters a stretch of its most lucrative events to end the season.

Todd Sinnott, Brendan Jones, Brad Kennedy, Adam Bland and New Zealand’s Michael Hendry will be aiming to become just the fourth player from this part of the world to lift the coveted trophy.

Paul Sheehan was the last Australasian to win the event in 2006 while David Smail (2002) and Craig Parry (1997) are the only others to achieve the feat.

It’s no surprise that Australia’s most successful Japan Tour player, Brendan Jones, has come the closest of the group with two top-5’s in 11 appearances.

In his first appearance in 2003 Jones was T4 and the following year third outright but with only one other top-10 since has never been a genuine contender.

Jones’ 2017 form has been steady with mid-field finishes in his last three tournaments but the more difficult conditions expected for the national championship will play to his strengths.

Brad Kennedy and Michael Hendry have been the most consistent performers among the Australasians the past two seasons and have proved so again in 2017 as the only two inside the top-25 in earnings.

Hendry is 20^th and Kennedy 22^nd on the Order of Merit and while neither has a particularly strong record at the event both will be confident ahead of the week.

Kennedy is yet to miss the 36-hole cut in six appearances though boasts only one top-10, a T6 in 2014.

Hendry has recorded three missed cuts in four starts but will be fresh ahead of his Thursday tee time after almost a month off.

Adam Bland will also be fresh after a two-week break as he looks to improve on his previous best result of T12 which came in 2015.

Todd Sinnott is the last of the Down Under challengers and tees up in his first Japan Open after earning a card for the Tour with his Myanmar Open victory early this year.

It has been a year of finding his feet for the 25-year-old who has split his time between the Japan and Asian Tours with mixed results.

He has played nine events in Japan with just three missed cuts and a best of T21 outside his win while in seven starts in Asia he has also missed three cuts with a best finish of 30th coming at the tri-sanctioned Fiji International.

Capable of overpowering golf courses with his extraordinary length off the tee, Sinnott is a danger wherever he tees up, including this week.