| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
100,000 | |
|
||
|
100,000
100,000
|
100,000 |
|
100,000 | |
|
100,000 | |
|
100,000 | |
|
100,000
100,000
|
100,000 |
On one of the first hands of Day 2, Uri Reichenstein got his stack of 135,000 into the middle preflop after a raising war with Nikolay Ponomarev.
Uri Reichenstein: A♥K♠ 
Nikolay Ponomarev: A♣J♣
Reichenstein was in great shape with big slick against the ace-jack of Ponomarev, and it was now up to the board to determine whether his Day 2 of the high roller would get off to the perfect or worst start.
Neither player improved on the 7♣Q♠4♦6♠3♣ runout, so Reichenstein's kicker played, and he doubled up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
275,000
140,000
|
140,000 |
|
170,000
101,000
|
101,000 |
Cards are in the air and play has started for Day 2 of the €2,750 High Roller.
Level: 9
Blinds: 1,000/1,500
Ante: 1,500
Day 2 of the €2,750 High Roller gets underway at 5 p.m. local time inside the Merit Royal Splendid Casino in Budva, as the 2026 Merit Poker Montenegro Championship continues. A total of 51 players return from 86 entries recorded so far, all still in contention for the tournament’s expected €200,000 prize pool.
Leading the way is Montenegro’s Nemanja Tatar, who ended Day 1 as the chip leader after bagging 628,500. He is followed closely by Illia Petrytsia, the only other player to surpass the 600,000 chip mark with 615,500, while Nazar Buhaiov sits third with 471,000.
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nemanja Tatar | Montenegro | 628,500 | 419 |
| 2 | Illia Petrytsia | Ukraine | 615,500 | 410 |
| 3 | Nazar Buhaiov | Ukraine | 471,000 | 314 |
| 4 | Sadik Alibeyoglu | Turkey | 364,500 | 243 |
| 5 | Bobby James | United Kingdom | 355,000 | 237 |
| 6 | Nikolay Ivanov | Bulgaria | 351,000 | 234 |
| 7 | Sergey Kudryavtsev | Russia | 303,500 | 202 |
| 8 | Alain Hajj | Lebanon | 286,500 | 191 |
| 9 | Tommy Mokhtari | Sweden | 278,000 | 185 |
| 10 | Nikolay Ponomarev | United Kingdom | 271,000 | 181 |
Also returning to the baize today is Norway’s Jon Kyte, who starts Day 2 with a below-average stack of 80,000. Now on his second entry, Kyte remains a player few will be keen to face. He has more than $3,600,000 in live tournament earnings, according to The Hendon Mob, with deep runs and final tables across the globe. Having already picked up his first-ever Merit Poker cash earlier this series in the Merit Poker Cup, Kyte will be looking to add another in the High Roller, the biggest buy-in event of the festival.
Action will restart at Level 9, with blinds of 1,000/1,500 and a 1,500 big blind ante. Late registration and unlimited reentries remain open until the end of Level 12, meaning the field is expected to grow further before the official prize pool and payouts are finalised. The full Day 2 schedule will be announced shortly after cards get in the air.
| Day | Date | Time | Blind Levels |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 2 | January 18 | 5 p.m. | 40 minutes |
| Day 3 | January 19 | 1 p.m. | 40 minutes |
Stay tuned to PokerNews for continued live coverage of the €2,750 High Roller, including all action from Budva as the tournament moves closer to its final stages.
€2,750 High Roller
Day 2 Started
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