A Sydney club player walked onto Rod Laver Arena, won a single point against the best in the world and left with A$1 million.
The One Point Slam turned opening week upside down as amateurs and pros battled for one-point knockouts, strange rules and big headlines, producing an unexpected champion who will be house hunting after his surprise payday.
One short point, one huge payday
I don’t know anymore. Coming into tonight, I was just happy to win one point. I was so nervous, but I enjoyed being out here. It was a great experience.
Jordan Smith
The event pits amateurs against pros in a sudden-death, single-point elimination format, with amateurs given two serves and ranked professionals allowed only one attempt to win any match.
That quirky advantage helped Sydney’s 29-year-old Jordan Smith qualify through state championships and then topple top names, including the tournament’s seeded world No 2 Jannik Sinner.
Sinner reached the One Point Slam after beating Pablo Carreno Busta, but his luck ran out when a serve failed to land in Smith’s service box, handing the amateur the deciding point and the upset victory.
Stars fall, crowd erupts
Rod Laver Arena roared after Smith defeated Sinner, and the volume only rose as he followed up by beating Amanda Anisimova to reach the final and ultimately claim the trophy and the prize money.
It was not only Sinner who stumbled. Men’s world number one Carlos Alcaraz crashed out after being beaten by Greece’s Maria Sakkari, who said afterwards, “It feels great to beat Carlos.”
The spectacle mixed high drama and comedy. Players used rock, paper, scissors to decide serve before points, and Pedro Martínez famously replied to an underhand serve with, “I gave him a taste of his own medicine,” after catching Alexander Bublik off guard.
Why the One Point Slam mattered
The One Point Slam is Tennis Australia’s 2026 experiment to expand opening-week entertainment, combining celebrities, amateurs and elite pros in a short, fan-friendly format designed to shock and delight a packed stadium.
Its single-point rules and state qualifying pathway gave an everyday player like Smith a route to the spotlight, and the crowd adored the David-versus-Goliath energy as the underdog kept finding a way to win.
Beyond the cash, Smith’s plan is practical and very human: after the final he said he would likely invest the money or buy a home with his girlfriend, making the victory a life-changing moment rather than a one-night novelty.
Big names still brought intrigue. Iga Świątek and other marquee players joined the event, but quick single-point upsets, including Sakkari taking out Alcaraz, showed the format’s capacity for unpredictability and headline-making moments.
Social media chimed in as stars reacted: Coco Gauff admitted she felt better about a missed serve after watching the chaos, while Taylor Fritz called the night a “massive L” for not playing, admitting the event looked like too much fun to miss.
For the Australian Open build-up, the One Point Slam delivered theatre and conversation, and it handed a modest club player a millionaire’s cheque and a story that will be replayed whenever an underdog serves for everything.
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Christoph Friedrich is a German tennis player and coach currently residing in Oakland, California. He began his tennis journey at the age of eight and has since dedicated his life to the sport. After working as a tennis coach and hitting partner in New York City for eight years, Christoph decided to share his knowledge and experience with tennis players around the world by creating the My Tennis Expert blog. His goal is to make tennis education accessible to everyone and help players select the best equipment for their game, from racquets and strings to shoes and overgrips. Christoph's extensive research and expertise in tennis technology make him a valuable resource for players of all levels.
