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Recreational competitors are being offered an opportunity to claim a seven-figure prize when they face elite players - including leading player the Spanish champion - in a single-point showdown before January's Australian Open

Tournament officials of the Melbourne major have revealed the Million Dollar One Point Slam, which will pit everyday competitors against 22 professionals in a single-elimination format at the tournament grounds

The Unique Tournament Functions

Players will play 'rock, paper, scissors' to determine who takes the serve or return position, and whoever wins the point will progress to the subsequent phase

The winner of the event will earn a significant cash prize

For comparison, players who reached the final four of the primary tournaments in the previous year's tournament won substantial prize money

Previous Related Competitions

The US Open organized a restructured, separate mixed doubles tournament in August which encouraged top singles players to participate, with the champions receiving $1m

The Melbourne tournament held its inaugural One Point Slam in the current season, but the cash prize was sixty thousand Australian dollars and it received minimal attention

Andrey Rublev was the only top-10 player involved, and his run concluded when he sent the one and only serve permitted failing to clear the net in his quarter-final

Event Details

Organizers have not said exactly how the event will function, but it is expected to mirror a similar format to this year's edition

The elite players will be granted to make one service and the everyday players twice - as is the usual procedure in standard play

While it is not certain how the bracket will work, there will be five knockout rounds and the location will be the main stadium rather than the smaller Kia Arena

The last matches will occur in a nighttime schedule instead of midday timing

Entry Details

Any Australians - or international players who have enrolled with the governing body - can compete in 'single-point competition' competitions at their local tennis clubs

The winners of the local competitions will then go into a selection process, with one amateur player from every state and territory selected to participate in the 'championship round' in a night session on Wednesday, 14 January

There will also be a entry tournament in December which non-professionals, aspiring competitors, celebrities and athletic celebrities can enter

It begins on early January and the successful competitors will advance to Wednesday's 'grand finale' with the remaining non-professionals and top-ranked athletes

"No matter your experience, the ultimate winner will receive the reward. Entries will open soon at venues throughout the nation"

Event organizers mentioned there were "more big names to be announced soon", while the official website mentioned "celebrities" would be participating