Carlos Alcaraz Set to Compete Against Amateurs in Million Dollar One Point Slam

Recreational competitors are being offered the possibility to win one million Australian dollars when they face elite players - headed by world number one Carlos Alcaraz - in a winner-takes-all point leading up to January's Australian Open

Event planners of the Australian Open have revealed the Million Dollar One Point Slam, which will pit 10 amateur players against elite athletes in a elimination competition at the Australian Open venue

How the Event Will Work

Players will play 'the decision-making game' to decide who serves or receives, and the competitor securing the point will move forward to the following stage

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

For comparison, players who advanced to the semi-finals of the primary tournaments in the last edition won A$1.1m

Previous Similar Events

The American Grand Slam hosted a restructured, separate mixed doubles tournament in late summer which prompted top singles players to participate, with the champions receiving a million-dollar prize

The Australian Open held its debut single-point competition earlier this year, but the total purse was sixty thousand Australian dollars and it received minimal attention

One top competitor was the sole elite competitor competing, and his progress came to an end when he sent the one and only serve granted into the mesh in his penultimate round

Event Details

Organizers have not said exactly how the event will work, but it is projected to follow a comparable structure to this year's edition

The elite players will be permitted to have a single serve and the amateurs two times - as is the standard practice in standard play

While it is unclear how the pairings will work, there will be several competitive phases and the venue will be the Rod Laver Arena rather than the secondary venue

The final stages will be held in a evening slot instead of early afternoon

Entry Details

Domestic competitors - or foreign participants who have signed up with the governing body - can participate in 'single-point competition' events at their local tennis clubs

The victors of the local competitions will then go into a random pairing, with an everyday competitor from every region and area selected to take part in the 'final competition' in a evening match on the specified date

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

It begins on the starting date and the two winners will go into the midweek 'championship match' with the remaining non-professionals and top-ranked athletes

"No matter your experience, the ultimate winner will claim the prize. Applications will begin shortly at venues throughout the nation"

Event organizers mentioned there were "additional stars to be revealed shortly", while the event portal indicated "famous personalities" would be taking part