Australian star Oliver Goss is probably the only player not eyeing the US Masters berth on offer at the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championships in China this week.

A spot in the field at Augusta National in the first major of 2014 is up for grabs at Nanshan International Golf Club from Thursday as the best amateur players in the region, including six Australians, do battle.

Goss, who finished third behind 14-year-old Chinese prodigy Guan Tianlang in the event in Thailand last year, already has a ticket to the Masters in May thanks to his runner-up finish at the US Amateur.

Last year five Australians finished in the top 11, with Goss the best.

He’s joined this year by Western Australian counterpart and US Amateur semi-finalist Brady Watt plus countrymen Daniel Hoeve, Taylor James MacDonald, Viraat Badhwar and Lucas Herbert.

They will again have to contend with Tianlang who is determined to return to the Masters after impressing the golfing world when he made the cut there this year.

Nineteen-year-old Goss, now based in the US playing college golf, still has plenty of extra incentive to play for with the winner also getting a free pass to final qualifying for the British Open.

“I had a great run last year in Thailand and was off the pace by three strokes,” said Goss.

“This time, the likes of Guan will be even harder to beat as he will have home support, but I have been playing well and am looking forward to the challenge.

Watt has also been in decent form.

The 23-year-old won the Ten Nations Cup and had a runner-up finish at the Australian Master of Amateurs Championship.

Hoeve won the 2013 Golf SA Amateur Classic and South Australia Amateur Classic while MacDonald finished ninth in the US Western Amateur and made the cut in both the Victoria Open and the Queensland PGA Championship.

India-born Queensland 17-year-old Badhwar won the 2013 Australian Master of the Amateurs Championship at Royal Melbourne, coming from six shots back.

Herbert, just 17, was runner-up in his first professional event, the Heritage Classic, on the Australian Tour the same result he had at the Callaway Junior World Championship at Torrey Pines in San Diego.