Defending champion and World Number 2 Jason Day will rightly be the centre of Australian fans’ attention this week but the Arnold Palmer Invitational is also a huge opportunity for two of the country’s most promising young players.

Reigning WA Open and US Amateur champion Curtis Luck and second year Professional Ryan Ruffels are both among the 10 Australians in this week’s field joining Day, Geoff Ogilvy, Cameron Smith, Rod Pampling, Steven Bowditch, Marc Leishman, Aaron Baddeley and Greg Chalmers.

Ruffels tees up at Bay Hill for the second time after also being extended an invitation last year while Luck’s place in the field is one of the perks of winning the 2016 US Amateur.

While Luck is in the US making his preparations for his Masters debut in three weeks’ time Ruffels continues to pursue his dream of earning a card on the PGA TOUR.

The 19-year-old has been plying his trade on the feeder PGA Tour Latino America where he finished 22nd on the money list in 2016 after playing just six events.

A T12 result last week in Argentina suggests his game is in decent shape and while he missed the cut at Bay Hill in 2016 a year of playing Professional golf will have sharpened his skills markedly.

For Luck, the tournament is yet another step on the journey after his life changing triumph at the 2016 US Amateur Championship.

The West Australian is one of the game’s more interesting characters with a swing and approach to the game that is less than orthodox in the modern era.

While he has had the opportunity to test himself at the Professional level several times in recent years this week’s tournament is a step up in class and will give him a clear indication of where his game stands.

Luck has proved capable of handling himself in the company of elite players when paired with both Jordan Spieth and Adam Scott over the Australian summer and his play this week will be a good indication of how his game stands heading to Augusta.

The same could be said for defending champion Jason Day whose preparations for the year’s first major were interrupted two weeks ago when he was forced to withdraw from the WGC Mexico Championship.

After his 2016 season was curtailed with niggling back problems Day was easing back into tournament golf in January and February and while yet to show his best had a promising finish at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

His play at Riviera was not up to his own high standards and missing the tournament in Mexico was far from ideal but the Queenslander has proved himself a tenacious competitor in recent years and it would be no surprise if he were to play himself into the mix come Sunday.

Among the rest of the Australians Rod Pampling might be one to watch after a week of mixed fortunes at the Valspar last week.

The 47-year-old is a former winner at Bay Hill and while that title came in 2006 he proved with his Shriners Hospitals for Children victory at the end of last year that he still has the game to contend at the top level.

A disastrous third round at the Copperhead Course last week was his undoing but his form early in 2017 has been decent and he will still have strong memories of his win here, and the associated good feelings that come with it, when he tees up Thursday.

Marc Leishman boasts the best single result of the rest of the Australians with a T3 in 2011 though his fortunes since haven’t been quite so good.

He has missed the cut twice and has just one top-20 to his name in the intervening years though is due a good result.

The Victorian has been thereabouts for most of 2017 with a string of top-30 finishes without ever really threatening.

Aaron Baddeley is another who has some good, though fading, memories at Bay Hill after two top-10 finishes in the early part of the new millennium.

Outright 6th in 2003 and T5 in 2005 remain his best efforts here but coming to the week off the back of four consecutive missed cuts his goals may be a little less ambitious this week.