JACK Holder began his quest for Australian Championship glory by reaching the final in round one at Albury-Wodonga on Monday.

The 23-year-old raced to a promising 13 points underlining his championship credentials as the highly-anticipated series finally got underway.

An 11-point haul in the qualifying heats including two race wins comfortably booked Holder's place in the semi-final stages.

Holder added a further two points to his tally with a hard-fought second place behind reigning champion Max Fricke in the first semi-final - booking his place in a star-studded grand final.

However, it wasn't to be for the Sheffield racer as he finished fourth in the restaging of the final after leading the original staging following an electric getaway from the outside gate.

2018 champion Rohan Tungate was victorious on the night with Belle Vue prospect Jaimon Lidsey taking second ahead of former teammate Fricke.

Holder sits fourth in the standings on 13 points - six points behind current leader Lidsey heading into Tuesday's (January 7) second round at Undera.

Final: Tungate, Lidsey, Fricke, J Holder.

AUSTRALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS: Jaimon Lidsey 19, Max Fricke 18, Rohan Tungate 14, Jack Holder 13, Sam Masters 12, Chris Holder 11, Brady Kurtz 10, Josh Pickering 9, Robert Medson 7, Jordan Stewart 6, Ryan Douglas 6, Zach Cook 4, Justin Sedgmen 4, Ben Cook 3, Jack Morrison 2, Zane Keleher 0.