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Recreational competitors are getting the chance to earn A$1m when they face elite players - including world number one Carlos Alcaraz - in a one-point battle leading up to the Australian Grand Slam

Tournament officials of the Australian Open have unveiled the $1 Million Single-Point Tournament, which will pit 10 amateur players against elite athletes in a knockout tournament at the tournament grounds

This Innovative Competition Operates

Competitors are set to play 'rock, paper, scissors' to establish who takes the serve or return position, and the competitor securing the point will move forward to the subsequent phase

The winner of the event will earn a significant cash prize

Contextually, players who made it to the penultimate round of the primary tournaments in the previous year's tournament won over a million Australian dollars

Earlier Similar Events

The New York major organized a restructured, standalone combined gender tournament in August which prompted top singles players to participate, with the victors receiving one million US dollars

The Australian Open held its debut single-point competition in the current season, but the prize fund was sixty thousand Australian dollars and it received minimal attention

Andrey Rublev was the sole elite competitor involved, and his run came to an end when he put the single service opportunity granted failing to clear the net in his quarter-final

Tournament Information

Planners have not said exactly how the event will function, but it is projected to follow a similar format to the previous version

The elite players will be allowed to make one service and the amateurs two times - as is the standard practice in conventional tennis

While it is uncertain how the draw will work, there will be multiple elimination stages and the venue will be the main stadium rather than the secondary venue

The last matches will occur in a nighttime schedule instead of early afternoon

Competitor Requirements

Domestic competitors - or foreign participants who have signed up with the governing body - can enter 'quick-match event' tournaments at their local tennis clubs

The winners of the local competitions will then go into a random pairing, with one amateur player from every geographic division selected to participate in the 'championship round' in a nighttime event on mid-January

There will also be a preliminary competition in late year which non-professionals, aspiring competitors, celebrities and sport stars can compete in

It begins on early January and the successful competitors will go into the midweek 'final showdown' with the additional everyday players and 10 professionals

"No matter your experience, the overall victor will receive the reward. Entries will start imminently at facilities across the country"

Competition planners stated there were "more big names to be revealed shortly", while the tournament site mentioned "famous personalities" would be involved