Alcaraz to Face Non-Professionals in Million Dollar Winner-Takes-All Event

Everyday tennis enthusiasts are being offered the chance to claim one million Australian dollars when they compete against tennis' top professionals - headed by top-ranked the Spanish champion - in a one-point battle leading up to the year's first major

Tournament officials of the year's first Grand Slam have revealed the Million Dollar One Point Slam, which will pit 10 amateur players against top-ranked players in a knockout tournament at the Australian Open venue

The Unique Tournament Functions

Competitors are set to play 'the classic hand game' to establish who takes the serve or return position, and the player who wins the point will progress to the next round

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

By comparison, players who advanced to the semi-finals of the main draw competitions in the last edition won A$1.1m

Past Similar Events

The New York major organized a restructured, standalone mixed doubles tournament in August which motivated top singles players to participate, with the victors receiving $1m

The year's first major held its inaugural single-point competition this year, but the total purse was a smaller amount and it received minimal attention

Andrey Rublev was the single high-ranked athlete involved, and his run came to an end when he directed the sole serving chance allowed into the net in his quarter-final

Competition Information

Planners have not said exactly how the event will function, but it is projected to mirror a comparable structure to the previous version

The elite players will be allowed to serve once and the everyday players on two occasions - as is the standard practice in conventional tennis

While it is not certain how the pairings will work, there will be multiple elimination stages and the venue will be the Rod Laver Arena rather than the alternative court

The concluding rounds will occur in a nighttime schedule instead of 1pm local time

Participation Details

Local players - or foreign participants who have enrolled with the governing body - can enter 'single-point competition' competitions at their community centers

The winners of the grassroots tournaments will then go into a draw, with a single non-professional from every state and territory picked to compete in the 'final competition' in a evening match on mid-January

There will also be a qualifying draw in December which everyday players, developing professionals, famous personalities and sport stars can enter

It starts on the starting date and the pair of champions will go into Wednesday's 'final showdown' with the other eight amateurs and top-ranked athletes

"No matter your experience, the overall victor will receive the award. Applications will open soon at facilities throughout the nation"

Tournament officials stated there were "further celebrities to be announced soon", while the tournament site indicated "famous personalities" would be involved