Dejan Kaladjurdjevic knows what it takes to run deep in a super high roller. The Montenegrin high-stakes player pulled that off in the 2024 Triton Montenegro $125K NLH Main Event where his second place finish earned him a $3,196,000 payout.
However, his first attempt at the $250,000 Super High Roller title at the 2026 World Series of Poker went up in flames after he attempted an ambitious five-high bluff in one of the opening levels of the summer’s biggest buy-in tournament.
Setting the Scene
Kaladjurdjevic lost a third of a 1,500,000 starting stack in the first level of play (3,000/5,000/5,000bba) after being put into the blender by #2 on the All-Tine Money List Stephen Chidwick in a hand that lasted more than ten minutes. PokerNews’ Maxime Taldir reported:
Alex Foxen, in the cutoff, bet 18,000 on the J♣9♠8♥ flop.
Chidwick — in the big blind — check-called but Kaladjurdjevic check-raised to 43,000 from the hijack. Foxen called before Chidwick came back with a reraise to 110,000. Both Kaladjurdjevic and Foxen called.
Chidwick continued for 185,000 on the 6♣ turn. Kaladjurdjevic called, while Foxen folded with a suspicious look.
The K♠ completed the board and Chidwick fired 525,000. Kaladjurdjevic went deep into the tank, using all five of his time-bank cards before eventually folding.
Not the start Kaladjurdjevic was looking for.
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Chasing Losses?
Kaladjurdjevic’s stack then dropped from one million to 868,000 by the time Level 2 (3,000/6,000/6,000bba) came around, and that’s when his stack really took a hit.
Aleksejs Ponakovs in middle position raised to 13,000 and was called by both Christoph Vogelsang and Kaladjurdjevic from the cutoff and big blind.
After Kaladjurdjevic and Ponakovs checked the 2♥4♦2♠ flop, Vogelsang bet 14,000. Kaladjurdjevic called but Ponakovs raised to 55,000. Vogelsang folded, then Kaladjurdjevic reraised to 138,000. Ponakovs made the call.
Kaladjurdjevic asked for 260,000 on the 10♠ turn and was called. He then moved all-in for 712,000 on the 7♥ river.
Ponakovs went into the tank for almost two minutes and eventually called off his last 667,000 with A♥A♦. Kaladjurdjevic only had 5♣3♥ for a missed straight draw and was left on 45,000.
No Mizrachi-Like Comeback
There’s been plenty of ‘a chip and a chair’ stories at the WSOP over the years, you only need to like to Michael Mizrachi in last summer’s Main Event. Kaladjurdjevic was looking to be the latest player to run it back up from dust, and he gave it his best effort.
He tripled up from 18,000 to 62,000 after his J♣2♣ bested Foxen’s 7♠7♦ and Brandon Wilson’s 4♥4♦. A double through Ponakovs in Level 3 with A♦Q♦ against A♠J♣ saw him jump up to 120,000, good for 15 big blinds. However, those chips ended up in Wilson’s stack as Kaladjurdjevic was the first player from the $250K to hit the rail.
On a board of J♥6♥2♦2♠Q♠ with 106,000 in the pot, Dejan Kaladjurdjevic in the big blind moved all-in for 65,000. Wilson in the small blind eventually made the call.
Dejan Kaladjurdjevic: Q♣10♣
Brandon Wilson: A♦2♣
Kaladjurdjevic rivered two pair but Wilson had trips, so Kaladjurdjevic was eliminated.
Second Bullet Going Better
Kaladjurdjevic immediately used his sole reentry and found himself battling Ponakovs once again. This time, the pot went to Kaladjurdjevic and he took the chip lead, jumping to 2,050,000 by the first break.
The $250,000 Super High Roller has seen 31 entries thus far, building a prize pool of $6,860,000. Alongside the previusly mentioned crushers, the likes of Daniel Negreanu, WSOP Paradise Super Main Event champion Bernhard Binder, Kristen Foxen, and Jason Koon are also in the mix.
If the numbers are anything to go by so far, the trend says that the event will surpass the 63 entries that were recorded in 2025, which was won by Seth Davies for $4,752,551.
Day 1 closes after Level 8 and late registration remains open until the end of Level 10, which is approximately at 2:15 p.m. on Sunday’s Day 2. A winner will then be crowned on June 15.
PokerNews’ is live reporting the event in sync with the WSOP stream, which is set to get underway at 6:30 p.m. local time.
Senior Editor & Live Events Executive
Calum has written for various poker outlets but found his home at PokerNews, where he has contributed to various articles and live updates, providing insights and reporting on major poker events, including the World Series of Poker (WSOP).