Of golf’s ‘Big Four’ it is the PGA Championship which has proved kindest to Australians and with seven starters in the field this week at Quail Hollow hopes are once again high of adding to the national Major tally.

The PGA was the first Major hoisted by an Australian and at this moment in time is also the last, Jim Ferrier’s 1947 victory and Jason Day’s 2015 triumph bookending wins by three other players.

David Graham in 1979, Wayne Grady in 1990 and Steve Elkington in 1995 have all sipped from the Rodman Wanamaker Trophy, the most individual winners of any Major title to come from these shores.

And with seven Aussies and two New Zealanders teeing up at Quail Hollow, there will be no shortage of interest from fans in this part of the southern hemisphere wheh play gets underway this week.

The Australasians who will be in the field are: Day, Scott, Marc Leishman, Scott Hend, Cameron Smith, Stuart Deane and Rod Pampling while Ryan Fox and Danny Lee fly the New Zealand flag.

As has been the case in recent years it is Jason Day and Adam Scott who are mathematically Australia’s best chances as they boast the highest world ranking but golf is a fickle game and others possibly have a case to make.

Scott Hend’s T10 performance at the WGC Bridgestone Invitational was extremely impressive, his 7-under 63 Saturday about as good as golf gets.

He will not start favourite with many but the long hitting veteran Queenslander is a confidence player whose potential when he gets going is almost limitless.

Hend is convinced, and rightly so, that his game and talent is at a level good enough to compete regularly on the PGA TOUR and with a point to prove in that regard he should be considered dangerous this week.

The course will again play to his strengths of long, high shots and while he has squandered a couple of chances to win on the European Tour he is also a proven multiple winner.

Controlling his emotions will likely be the key for Hend and the 18 holes he played with Hideki Matsuyama Sunday as the Japanese star streeted the field with a 61 at Firestone could well have put some things in perspective for him.

While there is no question Hend has all the tools to be in the mix come Sunday it is perhaps Marc Leishman who many feel is the most likely contender.

Leishman’s results in 2017 speak for themselves: top-20 on the FedEx Cup standings and a winner at one of the most prestigious tournaments on the world’s most competitive circuit.

A player who often produces his best golf at the biggest events the PGA is a tournament that sets up perfectly for the Victorian, particularly when one considers he has not been at his best with the driver for much of the year.

Despite that, however, he was a contender at Royal Birkdale and while he finished down the leaderboard at Firestone last week his final round 68 was his best of the week, perhaps an indication he has found that little something in his game.

Adam Scott, too, signed for a 68 Sunday, the same score he opened with Thursday but built in somewhat less dramatic circumstances.

It has been a season of ‘nearly’ for the 2013 Masters Champion and his Thursday play in Ohio was a perfect example.

At 5-under through 11 holes he took the outright lead before stumbling to the finish line with four bogeys in his last six holes, only a birdie at 16 averting complete disaster.

Scott himself has admitted being somewhat frustrated at seemingly producing 54 good holes most weeks without quite finishing things off.

That said, however, his desire for a second Major championship is beyond question and if his putter cooperates for a full 72 holes it would be a surprise if he wasn’t in the mix.

Jason Day has also had a frustrating 2017 campaign, the season marred by his mother’s illness early in the year and seemingly never quite gaining momentum.

Given his ability level it has been no surprise to see flashes of brilliance from him all year but 72 consecutive good holes has eluded him.

That could, of course, all change with one swing or holed putt and despite form suggesting he’s an unlikely winner he possesses the intangibles that make that yardstick a secondary consideration.

The remainder of the Australian and New Zealand contingent will start on the second line of betting but all are capable of making a good showing this week.

Ryan Fox stands out for both his extraordinary power as well as recent form at some of Europe’s biggest events though this stage, his first American Major, will be a new experience for him.

Fellow Kiwi Danny Lee is a PGA TOUR regular and will be comfortable in the environment but has been treading water for much of the 2017 season with just four top-10’s.

Cameron Smith has also found the going tough since notching his maiden PGA TOUR win earlier in the year and with four missed cuts in five events since brings little in the way of form to North Carolina.

Rod Pampling is the last of the full time Touring Professionals to fly the Australian flag and he, like Smith, brings little in the way of recent results to the table.

At 47 age is not on his side though, as he showed late last year when winning in Las Vegas, that is not a definitive barrier.

Texas based Stuart Deane is the last of the Australasians in the field and earns his way into the championship as a Club Professional for the second time.

Deane is the golf coach at the University of Arlington in Texas and was among the top-20 finishers at the US PGA Club Professional Championships in Oregon last month.

This is his second appearance at the PGA after he also qualified in 2014 where he missed the cut at Valhalla in Kentucky.