Alcaraz to Face Non-Professionals in Million Dollar Single-Point Showdown

Recreational competitors are getting an opportunity to earn a seven-figure prize when they compete against elite players - including leading player Carlos Alcaraz - in a single-point showdown prior to January's Australian Open

Tournament officials of the year's first Grand Slam have announced the Million Dollar One Point Slam, which will pair 10 amateur players against top-ranked players in a single-elimination format at the tournament grounds

How the Event Will Work

Players will play 'the classic hand game' to decide who gets to serve or return, and whoever wins the point will advance to the subsequent phase

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

Contextually, players who advanced to the final four of the main draw competitions in the 2025 Australian Open won over a million Australian dollars

Earlier Similar Events

The US Open staged a restructured, independent combined gender tournament in August which prompted top singles players to take part, with the winners receiving one million US dollars

The Australian Open held its first-ever single-point competition this year, but the cash prize was a smaller amount and it generated little publicity

Andrey Rublev was the only top-10 player participating, and his run concluded when he directed the single service opportunity permitted into the net in his quarter-final

Event Specifics

Organizers have not said exactly how the event will operate, but it is projected to mirror a comparable structure to the previous version

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

While it is unclear how the pairings will work, there will be multiple elimination stages and the site will be the Rod Laver Arena rather than the alternative court

The final stages will take place in a night session instead of 1pm local time

Competitor Requirements

Any Australians - or international players who have registered with Tennis Australia - can compete in 'single-point competition' tournaments at their local tennis clubs

The champions of the grassroots tournaments will then go into a random pairing, with an everyday competitor from every geographic division chosen to compete in the 'final competition' in a night session on Wednesday, 14 January

There will also be a entry tournament in the final month which non-professionals, lower ranked pros, famous personalities and athletic celebrities can compete in

It begins on the starting date and the pair of champions will advance to the midweek 'grand finale' with the remaining non-professionals and elite competitors

"No matter your experience, the final champion will claim the prize. Applications will start imminently at facilities nationwide"

Competition planners stated there were "more big names to be announced soon", while the official website said "celebrities" would be participating