Alcaraz to Face Non-Professionals in Million Dollar One Point Slam

Amateur players are getting the possibility to earn a seven-figure prize when they face tennis' top professionals - featuring world number one the Spanish champion - in a single-point showdown prior to the Australian Grand Slam

Event planners of the Melbourne major have announced the Seven-Figure Quick-Fire Competition, which will match 10 amateur players against top-ranked players in a single-elimination format at the Australian Open venue

How the Event Will Work

Participants must play 'rock, paper, scissors' to determine who serves or receives, and whoever wins the point will advance to the subsequent phase

The winner of the event will earn a significant cash prize

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

Past Comparable Tournaments

The American Grand Slam staged a restructured, independent combined gender tournament in late summer which encouraged top singles players to participate, with the victors receiving a million-dollar prize

The Australian Open held its first-ever quick-fire event earlier this year, but the cash prize was sixty thousand Australian dollars and it received minimal attention

Andrey Rublev was the single high-ranked athlete competing, and his progress came to an end when he sent the single service opportunity allowed into the net in his penultimate round

Tournament Information

Organizers have not detailed exactly how the event will operate, but it is expected to mirror a similar format to the most recent iteration

The elite players will be permitted to have a single serve and the everyday players two times - as is the usual procedure in conventional tennis

While it is uncertain how the draw will work, there will be multiple elimination stages and the location will be the main stadium rather than the smaller Kia Arena

The final stages will take place in a night session instead of early afternoon

Participation Information

Domestic competitors - or overseas competitors who have enrolled with Tennis Australia - can enter 'single-point competition' tournaments at their neighborhood facilities

The champions of the community events will then go into a draw, with an everyday competitor from every state and territory selected to take part in the 'final competition' in a nighttime event on mid-January

There will also be a entry tournament in December which everyday players, lower ranked pros, well-known figures and sport stars can enter

It starts on Monday, 12 January and the two winners will qualify for the following day's 'championship match' with the additional everyday players and elite competitors

"No matter your experience, the overall victor will walk away with the award. Registrations will begin shortly at facilities across the country"

Event organizers said there were "more big names to be revealed shortly", while the event portal said "well-known figures" would be involved