Roope Tarmi Does the Double, Claiming €10,000 Super High Roller Title and €79,945
When the 2026 Irish Open schedule was released, two events caught the eye of Roope Tarmi, and, having won the €5,000 High Roller yesterday, the Finnish pro returned to the Royal Dublin Society today and added the €10,000 Super High Roller trophy to his collection.
"I'm feeling very good, I won the €5,000 High Roller, and met a couple of friends for some beers, then late registered into this, and bagged the chip lead", Tarmi told PokerNews, and with that chip lead, he never looked back.
Sponsored by PokerStars and Paddy Power Poker, the tournament generated a prize pool of €130,000, with payouts for the top two finishers. When the dust settled, Tarmi had outlasted the 13-strong field, taking home €79,945, whilst Netherlands high roller, Joris Ruijs, had to settle for second place and €43,000.
€10,000 Super High Roller Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Roope Tarmi | Finland | €79,945 |
| 2 | Joris Ruijs | Netherlands | €43,000 |
Winner's Reaction
"Today I didn't lose any all-ins, so that made it a bit easier", was Tarmi's overall analysis.
"It didn't look that well at one point", he continued, "I lost some chips to Joris, and he was to my left with a big stack, but I managed to win some pots, and he lost some pots, so I had the chip lead when the bubble started".
This victory will also serve to move Tarmi up the all-time money list for Finland, which wasn't lost on him.
"I have a couple of buddies that I want to stay ahead of, I passed them [on the list] in Paris, but now they are further behind, which is good".
Final Day Action
When the eight returning players took their seats for Day 2, they were joined by three late registrants, bringing the field to 11.
The action got underway immediately, with Marty Smyth and Richard Koppel both exiting early to set the final table.
A further flurry of eliminations followed, as Andrew Hulme, Ranno Sootla, Parker Talbot and Conor Bergin all fell in quick succession. However, once Mathew Frankland exited in fifth place, the pace of play began to slow.
Each of the remaining four players held the chip lead at various stages during four-handed play, but it was Jonathan Proudfoot who eventually bowed out next. After moving all in over a button raise from eventual winner Tarmi, Proudfoot was unable to improve, his elimination leaving the tournament on the direct bubble.
Three-handed play lasted just a few hands, as Kenneth Broad took the opportunity to move all in over a button raise from Ruijs, but ran straight into pocket kings. There was no help to be found for the Englishman, who had the misfortune of becoming the tournament bubble boy.
Heads-Up Play
Once the two remaining players got themselves comfortable at the table, heads-up play began with relatively even stacks, but within half an hour, Tarmi had collected all the chips.
After a few hands, it was Ruijs who had pulled ahead, but when Tarmi forced his opponent off the pot after triple-barrelling his whole stack into the middle, parity was restored.
Then came the crucial pot. Just 20 minutes into heads-up play, Tarmi and Ruijs played a five-bet all-in pot preflop, for almost all the chips in play. Tarmi held pocket tens, and Ruijs had ace-king. There was no help to be found for Ruijs, who was left with fewer than 10 big blinds.
The very next shuffle, Tarmi sealed the deal.
After Ruijs limped in on the button, Tarmi opted to check his option, taking them to a flop. Seeing a ten-high board, the players maneuvered their stacks into the middle, only for Tarmi to reveal he had checked back pocket aces in the big blind. Once again, help was unforthcoming for Ruijs, who had flopped top pair, and Tarmi was crowned champion.
"I'm thinking I will have a few beers and play the main event tomorrow" were Tarmi's parting thoughts.
That concludes PokerNews coverage of the €10,000 Super High Roller. Full attention now turns to the 2026 Irish Open Main Event, with live updates continuing from the Royal Dublin Society.
