Bernard Tomic enjoyed the best of it as the tennis gods smiled on the local hopes at Friday’s Australian Open draw in Melbourne.

After copping a horror draw last year, Australia’s tennis aces were all handed winnable first-round matches at the season’s first grand slam starting on Monday.

Samantha Stosur, seeded 20th in the women’s event, will launch her campaign against world No.46 Monica Niculescu, a Romanian who the Australian No.1 has beaten in all four of their previous career encounters.

Australia’s only other seed, world No.29 Casey Dellacqua, faces Austrian Yvonne Meusburger in her opener.

Stosur is in the same pocket of the draw as Dellacqua and scheduled to play rising American Coco Vandewheghe, ranked 37th, or her 2010 French Open final conqueror Francesca Schiavone, now ranked 77th, in round two.

Stosur’s first projected battle with a seed is a potential third-round clash with German 13th seed Andrea Petkovic, while reigning Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova could be waiting in the last 16.

Tomic, fresh off quarter-final runs in Brisbane and Sydney, should be licking his lips after landing nowhere near any of the heavyweights in the men’s draw.

The 22-year-old former Open junior champion opens against Germany’s world No.93 Tobias Kamke, with 22nd seed Philipp Kohlschreiber, who Tomic thrashed in Sydney this week, his scheduled second-round opponent.

Presented with an inviting opportunity to reach the quarter-finals for the first time at Melbourne Park, Tomic could meet 11th seed Ernests Gulbis in the third round, with world No.7 Tomas Berdych the highest-ranked rival in his eighth of the draw.

After losing to US Open runner-up Kei Nishikori in Brisbane and falling victim to 25 aces in two sets against Gilles Muller in Sydney on Thursday night, Tomic said he was feeling good about his Open prospects.

“I can do some damage down there for sure, the way I’m playing,” he said.

Contesting his record 19th consecutive Australian Open, Lleyton Hewitt will meet Chinese wildcard Zhang Ze in the first round, with Nick Kyrgios drawing Argentina’s world No.57 Frederico Delbonis.

Kokkinakis, who made the second round last year, plays Gulbis first up, with fellow wildcard John Millman the only other Australian to draw a seed – Argentina’s world No.28 Leonardo Mayer.

Tennis Australia boss Craig Tiley was delighted with the draw.

“There’s no question that there are more opportunities,” Tiley said.

“There are more opportunities than we’ve enjoyed over the past several years for Australian players.”

Bidding for a record fifth Open title, world No.1 Novak Djokovic will play a qualifier, with fourth seed and defending champion Stanislas Wawrinka in the same top half of the draw and facing Marsel Ilhan in the first round.

Second seed Roger Federer, also eyeing a fifth crown, plays China’s Yen Hsun Lu and could run into old rival Rafael Nadal in a repeat of last year’s semi-final.

But third-seeded Nadal, who admits to being underdone after an injury-plagued 2014 campaign, will have a tough time even getting past dangerous Russian Mikhail Youzhny in round one.

Women’s world No.1 Serena Williams will open against Belgium’s Alison Van Uytvanck, while second seed Maria Sharapova drew a qualifier.

Two-time champion Victoria Azarenka, unseeded after an injury-hit 2014, will take on American Sloane Stephens in a spicy rematch of their niggly semi-final two years ago.

WHO THE AUSTRALIANS FACE IN ROUND ONE OF THE AUSTRALIAN OPEN (PREFIX DENOTES SEEDING):

MEN

Nick Kyrgios v Federico Delbonis (ARG)

Bernard Tomic v Tobias Kamke (GER)

Marinko Matosevic v qualifier

Lleyton Hewitt – Zhang Ze (CHN)

Sam Groth v Filip Krajinovic (SRB)

James Duckworth v Blaz Kavcic (SLO)

Thanasi Kokkinakis v 11-Ernests Gulbis (LAT)

Luke Saville v qualifier

John Millman v 26-Leonardo Mayer (ARG)

Jordan Thompson v Joao Sousa (POR)

WOMEN

20-Samantha Stosur v Monica Niculescu (ROM)

29-Casey Dellacqua v Yvonne Meusburger (AUT)

Jarmila Gajdosova v Alexandra Dulgheru (ROM)

Ajla Tomjlanovic v Shelby Rogers (USA)

Olivia Rogowska v Nicole Gibbs (USA)

Storm Sanders v Klara Koukalova (CZE)

Daria Gavrilova v Kiki Bertens (NED)

Arina Rodionova v Monica Puig (ROM)