Merit Poker €2,750 High Roller Takes Center Stage From 7 p.m.
The €2,750 High Roller gets underway this evening at 7 p.m. local time inside the Merit Royal Splendid Casino, as the 2026 Merit Poker Montenegro Championship continues in Budva. The three-day tournament is the largest buy-in event of the series, bringing the festival’s high stakes action to the forefront.
One of the flagship events on the schedule, the High Roller is expected to produce a €200,000 prize pool and attract an international field. The tournament will be played with 40-minute blind levels throughout, with late registration remaining open until the end of Level 12.
The most recent Merit Poker High Roller was held during the 2025 Merit Poker Dolce Vita Series, where Cedric Schwaederle topped a 318 entry field to win the largest-ever Merit Poker High Roller for $310,000. Schwaederle defeated Mohamed El-Wely heads up, with Aren Bezhanyan finishing in third place, providing a recent example of what to expect in Merit Poker High Rollers.
2025 Merit Poker Dolce Vita Series Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cedric Schwaederle | France | $310,000 |
| 2 | Mohamed El-Wely | Mauritania | $216,500 |
| 3 | Aren Bezhanyan | Armenia | $155,000 |
| 4 | Xuming Qi | China | $111,000 |
| 5 | Adrian State | Romania | $81,000 |
| 6 | Salah Assi | France | $60,500 |
| 7 | Mehmet Demirkol | Turkey | $45,700 |
| 8 | Sakis Adrianopoulos | Greece | $35,000 |
| 9 | Roman Pshyk | Ukraine | $27,500 |
The €2,750 High Roller follows a three-day structure with 40-minute blind levels throughout, and players start with 100,000 chips. The official Day 1 schedule will be announced shortly after cards get in the air, but if it follows the same format as previous Merit Poker High Rollers, the opening day is expected to play eight levels before players bag up for the night.
€2,750 High Roller Schedule
| Day | Date | Time | Blind Levels |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | January 17 | 7 p.m. | 40 minutes |
| Day 2 | January 18 | 5 p.m. | 40 minutes |
| Day 3 | January 19 | 1 p.m. | 40 minutes |
Stay tuned to PokerNews for full live coverage of the €2,750 High Roller, including chip counts and updates throughout the tournament as play unfolds in Budva.