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Recreational competitors are getting the possibility to earn A$1m when they face world-class athletes - featuring world number one Carlos Alcaraz - in a winner-takes-all point before January's Australian Open

Organizers of the Melbourne major have announced the $1 Million Single-Point Tournament, which will pit 10 amateur players against 22 professionals in a knockout tournament at the tournament grounds

How the Event Will Work

Competitors are set to play 'the decision-making game' to determine who gets to serve or return, and the competitor securing the point will move forward to the next round

The champion of the event will earn a significant cash prize

For comparison, players who reached the penultimate round of the primary tournaments in the last edition won A$1.1m

Past Similar Events

The New York major hosted a revamped, independent combined gender tournament in late summer which motivated top singles players to take part, with the champions receiving $1m

The year's first major held its inaugural single-point competition in the current season, but the cash prize was a smaller amount and it generated little publicity

The Russian player was the only top-10 player participating, and his campaign finished when he directed the sole serving chance allowed into the mesh in his penultimate round

Tournament Information

Officials have not specified precisely how the event will operate, but it is projected to emulate a similar format to the most recent iteration

The professionals will be permitted to make one service and the amateurs twice - as is the usual procedure in standard play

While it is not certain how the pairings will work, there will be several competitive phases and the site will be the main stadium rather than the smaller Kia Arena

The concluding rounds will take place in a nighttime schedule instead of midday timing

Participation Requirements

Any Australians - or international players who have enrolled with the national federation - can enter 'single-point competition' competitions at their neighborhood facilities

The victors of the community events will then go into a random pairing, with an everyday competitor from every state and territory picked to compete in the 'championship round' in a evening match on Wednesday, 14 January

There will also be a preliminary competition in the final month which non-professionals, lower ranked pros, celebrities and athletic celebrities can participate in

It commences on the starting date and the pair of champions will qualify for the midweek 'championship match' with the additional everyday players and elite competitors

"Regardless of your skill level, the overall victor will receive the award. Applications will start imminently at clubs throughout the nation"

Event organizers mentioned there were "additional stars to be unveiled imminently", while the event portal indicated "famous personalities" would be participating