Onyx High Stakes Championship | Mikalai Vaskaboinikau narrowly entered but defied expectations to win the title and take home $450,000.

On August 17, 2026, the $50,500 High Roller Championship, one of the highest buy-in levels in the Onyx High Roller Series, concluded at the Merit Royal Diamond Hotel Casino & Spa in Northern Cyprus. Belarusian star Mikalai Vaskaboinikau ultimately defeated Russian cash game expert Alexey Borovkov to claim the championship and the $450,000 prize.

The most dramatic part of this victory was that Vaskaboinikau almost didn't even participate. With the late registration deadline fast approaching, he realized he only had about two minutes left to register and rushed to his seat. The 18 participants created a prize pool of $864,000, and this player who almost missed the competition ended up being the only one to lift the trophy.

The 18-player high roller tournament only awards prizes to the top three finishers, with a bubble value of $164,000.

Although this $50,500 High Roller Championship only has 18 participants, the prize structure is extremely steep, with only the bottom three making it into the money. The third-place finisher will receive $164,000, equivalent to more than three times the buy-in; the fourth-place finisher will receive nothing.

Onyx $50, 500 High Roller Championship Final Results

After entering the market just short of the line, it suffered heavy losses in the early stages and was once on the verge of elimination.

Vaskaboinikau's path to the championship did not start well.

Early on, he held pocket pairs below face value and fired three consecutive shots at Aleksejs Ponakovs, but Ponakovs eventually finished with a Broadway straight, taking a large number of chips from Vaskaboinikau and quickly pushing him into the short stacks.

The situation was so dire that Vaskaboinikau had started discussing with friends what he would do if he were eliminated soon. However, the outcome was completely different; instead of being eliminated early, he fought his way up from short yards to the championship.

In the five-player phase, the flop resulted in a flush, doubling up from Rob Yong.

Thomas Alfred Mayer became the first player to be eliminated, followed by Ponakovs, Artur Martirosian, and Manuel Fritz, quickly reducing the field to five players.

Vaskaboinikau desperately needed to replenish his chips, and in a hand against Rob Yong, owner of Onyx Club, he flopped a flush, successfully doubling up and returning to the competition.

Shortly after, he successfully maintained his lead with AQ, eliminating Zorlu Er in fifth place and officially pushing the competition into the four-person bubble stage.

The four-player bubble was worth $164,000, and Badziakouski went from chip leader to being eliminated.

The four-player table became the most brutal stage of the entire competition.

If just one more player is eliminated, the remaining three will at least guarantee $164,000; those eliminated in the bubble will receive no prize money at all. At the time, Mikita Badziakouski was the least likely to be eliminated in the bubble.

Despite starting the day with a shorter chip stack, Badziakouski surged to the chip leader position, with a large pot where pocket Aces defeated pocket Queens giving him a significant lead.

But his lead crumbled quickly in a short period of time.

First, Badziakouski used his high-scoring cards to put pressure on the opponent, going all-in with A-9; Rob Yong, however, called with pocket tens and successfully held on, taking the chip lead.

Next, Badziakouski went all-in again from the small blind with K-high, and Vaskaboinikau called immediately from the big blind with AJ. The community cards did not help either side, and AJ-high won outright, leaving Badziakouski with only a few big blinds.

Rob Yong delivers the final blow, Badziakouski turns to foam.

After falling into a very short stack, Badziakouski once again went all-in with King-high, but this time he ran into Rob Yong.

The flop gave Yong a pair of eights, ultimately eliminating Badziakouski in fourth place. This high-stakes player, who was then fourth on The Hendon Mob's all-time money list, went from a chip leader at the four-handed table to being bubble-out, missing out on at least $164,000 in prize money.

With Badziakouski's departure, Vaskaboinikau, Yong, and Day 2 starting chip leader Alexey Borovkov have all officially entered the money.

After the bubble burst, the pace quickened, and Vaskaboinikau eliminated Rob Yong.

After the $164,000 bubble burst, the pace of the three-person table game immediately accelerated significantly.

Yong first allowed Borovkov to double up, and then went all-in with Vaskaboinikau. Yong's hand was suppressed, and he lost with only a few chips left.

He survived his first short-stack all-in, but Vaskaboinikau took a clear lead again when he went all-in the second time.

Vaskaboinikau: A-10
Rob Yong: K-9

The community cards gave Vaskaboinikau a 10, ultimately eliminating Yong in third place. Yong earned 1TP 4T 164,000, while the championship match will see Vaskaboinikau face Borovkov.

Cash game expert Borovkov launched a counterattack, but still couldn't stop Vaskaboinikau.

When the heads-up match began, Vaskaboinikau had a clear advantage in the scoreboard.

Borovkov didn't collapse immediately; instead, he successfully doubled up early in heads-up play, quickly narrowing the gap. However, Vaskaboinikau then continued to chip away at his opponent's chips through multiple pots, soon pushing Borovkov back into danger.

Ultimately, Borovkov didn't have enough chips left to wait, so he went all-in after getting K-6.

Vaskaboinikau immediately called after seeing A-8.

A-8 flopped an Ace, and the river card brought a set to complete the game.

The decisive hand for the championship:

Mikalai Vaskaboinikau: A-8
Alexey Borovkov: K-6

The flop immediately revealed an Ace, allowing Vaskaboinikau to further extend his lead, leaving Borovkov to wait for the next card to create a miracle.

No miracle occurred.

The river card landed another Ace, giving Vaskaboinikau a set of Aces and officially ending the heads-up match. Borovkov finished as runner-up, earning $250,000, while Vaskaboinikau secured $450,000 and the Onyx High Roller Championship trophy.

Playing only four or five series a year, each trophy is especially important.

After winning the championship, Vaskaboinikau said that this was not an ordinary "workday" for him.

He doesn't usually participate in a lot of tournaments, only selecting about four or five series to compete in a year, so every championship and trophy has special meaning for him.

Vaskaboinikau revealed that he has won championship trophies in most of the poker series he regularly participates in, but he was still missing this one; with his victory at the Onyx High Roller Championship, he described his "mission" as finally completed.

From almost missing the registration deadline to ultimately winning a whopping $450,000

The entire championship process was almost a complete reversal.

Vaskaboinikau barely made it into the competition with only two minutes left before the registration deadline; early on Day 1, he fell into a short chip after a failed three-shot attack and even started discussing his plans after being eliminated with his friends.

But he first doubled up against Rob Yong, then eliminated Zorlu Er to enter the brutal four-player bubble; then he used AJ to crush Badziakouski, who was then in the chip lead, and after entering the money, he personally eliminated Yong and Borovkov.

Ultimately, the $50,500 high-stakes tournament that Vaskaboiinikau almost didn't even participate in brought him $450,000 and a championship trophy that was previously missing from his resume.

For the Triton champion, who only chooses to compete in a few series each year, the Onyx title adds another important piece to his trophy collection.

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