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Recreational competitors are being offered the possibility to claim one million Australian dollars when they compete against tennis' top professionals - featuring leading player Carlos Alcaraz - in a one-point battle before the Australian Grand Slam

Organizers of the Melbourne major have revealed the Seven-Figure Quick-Fire Competition, which will pit 10 amateur players against elite athletes in a elimination competition at the tournament grounds

The Unique Competition Operates

Participants must play 'rock, paper, scissors' to establish who takes the serve or return position, and whoever wins the point will advance to the next round

The champion of the event will receive £490,000

Contextually, players who reached the semi-finals of the men's or women's singles in the last edition won A$1.1m

Past Comparable Tournaments

The US Open organized a revamped, separate mixed doubles tournament in late summer which prompted top singles players to participate, with the victors receiving a million-dollar prize

The year's first major held its first-ever One Point Slam earlier this year, but the prize fund was sixty thousand Australian dollars and it generated little publicity

The Russian player was the only top-10 player competing, and his progress concluded when he put the one and only serve granted failing to clear the net in his penultimate round

Event Information

Organizers have not specified precisely how the event will operate, but it is expected to follow a akin setup to the previous version

The professionals will be granted to make one service and the everyday players twice - as is the norm in conventional tennis

While it is unclear how the draw will work, there will be five knockout rounds and the venue will be the Rod Laver Arena rather than the alternative court

The concluding rounds will take place in a night session instead of midday timing

Participation Details

Domestic competitors - or overseas competitors who have enrolled with the governing body - can compete in 'quick-match event' events at their community centers

The winners of the local competitions will then go into a selection process, with an everyday competitor from every geographic division selected to compete in the 'final competition' in a evening match on mid-January

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

It starts on Monday, 12 January and the pair of champions will advance to the following day's 'grand finale' with the remaining non-professionals and top-ranked athletes

"No matter your experience, the overall victor will walk away with the reward. Applications will open soon at clubs across the country"

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