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Everyday tennis enthusiasts are getting an opportunity to earn one million Australian dollars when they take on elite players - including leading player Carlos Alcaraz - in a winner-takes-all point leading up to January's Australian Open

Tournament officials of the Australian Open have unveiled the $1 Million Single-Point Tournament, which will pair a dozen non-professionals against top-ranked players in a elimination competition at the Australian Open venue

This Innovative Event Will Work

Competitors are set to play 'rock, paper, scissors' to decide who gets to serve or return, and whoever wins the point will progress to the subsequent phase

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

For comparison, players who reached the final four of the primary tournaments in the last edition won over a million Australian dollars

Previous Comparable Tournaments

The US Open staged a redesigned, separate combined gender tournament in the eighth month which encouraged top singles players to compete, with the champions receiving a million-dollar prize

The Melbourne tournament held its debut single-point competition this year, but the prize fund was A$60,000 and it had limited exposure

Andrey Rublev was the sole elite competitor participating, and his run finished when he put the one and only serve granted failing to clear the net in his last eight match

Competition Details

Officials have not detailed exactly how the event will operate, but it is projected to mirror a akin setup to the previous version

The elite players will be permitted to have a single serve and the amateurs two times - as is the norm in traditional tennis

While it is not certain how the bracket will work, there will be several competitive phases and the site will be the primary court rather than the secondary venue

The final stages will be held in a nighttime schedule instead of midday timing

Entry Information

Any Australians - or foreign participants who have registered with the governing body - can enter 'single-point competition' competitions at their neighborhood facilities

The winners of the local competitions will then go into a random pairing, with a single non-professional from every geographic division chosen to take part in the 'grand finale' in a nighttime event on mid-January

There will also be a entry tournament in late year which non-professionals, aspiring competitors, famous personalities and sport stars can participate in

It starts on the starting date and the pair of champions will go into the following day's 'grand finale' with the other eight amateurs and 10 professionals

"Regardless of your skill level, the overall victor will claim the reward. Registrations will start imminently at clubs nationwide"

Tournament officials stated there were "more big names to be revealed shortly", while the tournament site indicated "well-known figures" would be involved