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Everyday tennis enthusiasts will have an opportunity to claim one million Australian dollars when they face elite players - featuring top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz - in a single-point showdown leading up to January's Australian Open

Tournament officials of the Melbourne major have announced the Seven-Figure Quick-Fire Competition, which will pit 10 amateur players against top-ranked players in a single-elimination format at the tournament grounds

This Innovative Competition Operates

Participants must play 'the decision-making game' to determine who takes the serve or return position, and the player who wins the point will advance to the next round

The champion of the event will take home approximately half a million pounds

For comparison, players who reached the semi-finals of the main draw competitions in the last edition won over a million Australian dollars

Past Similar Events

The American Grand Slam hosted a revamped, standalone mixed doubles tournament in the eighth month which motivated top singles players to take part, with the winners receiving a million-dollar prize

The Australian Open held its first-ever One Point Slam in the current season, but the prize fund was a smaller amount and it had limited exposure

One top competitor was the only top-10 player competing, and his run concluded when he sent the one and only serve allowed into the mesh in his last eight match

Competition Details

Organizers have not specified precisely how the event will operate, but it is anticipated to mirror a comparable structure to the previous version

The elite players will be permitted to serve once and the amateurs two times - as is the usual procedure in conventional tennis

While it is uncertain how the bracket will work, there will be multiple elimination stages and the venue will be the primary court rather than the smaller Kia Arena

The last matches will be held in a nighttime schedule instead of midday timing

Participation Information

Local players - or international players who have enrolled with Tennis Australia - can compete in 'single-point competition' events at their local tennis clubs

The champions of the community events will then go into a selection process, with an everyday competitor from every state and territory selected to participate in the 'championship round' in a nighttime event on Wednesday, 14 January

There will also be a preliminary competition in December which non-professionals, lower ranked pros, celebrities and athletic celebrities can enter

It starts on the starting date and the pair of champions will advance to Wednesday's 'championship match' with the remaining non-professionals and elite competitors

"Regardless of your skill level, the final champion will receive the prize. Applications will start imminently at venues throughout the nation"

Tournament officials mentioned there were "further celebrities to be announced soon", while the official website mentioned "celebrities" would be involved