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Everyday tennis enthusiasts will have the possibility to earn A$1m when they face tennis' top professionals - featuring top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz - in a winner-takes-all point leading up to the year's first major

Event planners of the year's first Grand Slam have revealed the $1 Million Single-Point Tournament, which will pit 10 amateur players against elite athletes in a knockout tournament at the tournament grounds

How the Competition Operates

Players will play 'rock, paper, scissors' to determine who gets to serve or return, and the player who wins the point will progress to the subsequent phase

The winner of the event will earn approximately half a million pounds

For comparison, players who reached the penultimate round of the main draw competitions in the last edition won substantial prize money

Past Related Competitions

The US Open staged a redesigned, independent combined gender tournament in late summer which motivated top singles players to participate, with the winners receiving one million US dollars

The Melbourne tournament held its first-ever single-point competition in the current season, but the total purse was sixty thousand Australian dollars and it generated little publicity

One top competitor was the sole elite competitor involved, and his progress finished when he put the single service opportunity granted into the net in his penultimate round

Event Information

Organizers have not detailed exactly how the event will operate, but it is anticipated to follow a similar format to this year's edition

The professionals will be permitted to make one service and the everyday players two times - as is the norm in traditional tennis

While it is unclear how the draw will work, there will be multiple elimination stages and the venue will be the primary court rather than the secondary venue

The final stages will be held in a evening slot instead of 1pm local time

Participation Information

Domestic competitors - or international players who have signed up with the national federation - can compete in 'quick-match event' tournaments at their community centers

The winners of the local competitions will then go into a random pairing, with one amateur player from every geographic division picked to compete in the 'championship round' in a night session on Wednesday, 14 January

There will also be a qualifying draw in late year which amateurs, lower ranked pros, celebrities and sports personalities can enter

It starts on Monday, 12 January and the successful competitors will qualify for the following day's 'grand finale' with the remaining non-professionals and top-ranked athletes

"No matter your experience, the ultimate winner will receive the reward. Registrations will begin shortly at facilities throughout the nation"

Competition planners said there were "more big names to be announced soon", while the tournament site indicated "celebrities" would be taking part