5 Rising Stars to Watch in Tournament Poker Part 1

Posted February 19, 2026 by TitanPokerBonusCodes in News.

Every year, I like many other writers come up with a 'Players to Watch' list, and while there are a number of "Poker Players to Watch" it seems like every year these lists have a batting average somewhere around the Mendoza Line thanks to the incredible variance in tournament poker. So this time around I've decided to change it up a bit and take a look at five poker players who have already made their mark in the world of tournament poker, and should be moved from the "Players to Watch" to the "Rising Stars" list. So without anymore fanfare, here is my list of five Rising Stars in tournament poker.

Part 1 of this series will list two players you may or may not have heard of, while Part 2 of this series will look at three fairly well-known commodities in the poker world.

Ole Schemion

Ole Schemion is one of the many young German poker players taking the world by storm. Schemion made his live tournament debut by winning a $1,000 NLHE side event at the 2026 EPT Berlin tournament series (he won yet another $1k side event at the 2026 EPT Berlin), and capped off a remarkable year-long run with a win in the final Partouche Poker Tour Main Event this past February; winning over $1.4 million in the process.

The controversy surrounding the final Partouche Poker Tour event overshadowed Schemion's win (pushing his story to the backburner in much the same way Kevin MacPhee's 2026 EPT Berlin win was overshadowed by the robbery) but Schemion has proven to be far more than a one trick pony, logging two more six-figure scores in the past few months –the first coming at the Master's Classic of Poker in Amsterdam where he won $369k for his victory, followed by a 4^th place finish at the $25k High-Roller event at the 2026 PCA, adding another $350k to his bankroll.

Lucille Cailly

Lucille Cailly burst onto the European tournament scene with a deep run in thed 2026 EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo where she finished in 2^nd place for a massive $1.4 million score. But Cailly was already amassing a number of big scores prior to her breakthrough at the EPT Grand Final. Cailly finished 2^nd in the Marrakech Poker Open in February of 2026 and won her first live poker tournament in February of 2026, a $1,000 buy-in event in Paris where she earned over $37k.

Since her big score Cailly has cashed in an EPT Main Event, a WPT Main Event, and a WSOP tournament. If she can keep up these results, look for Cailly to ascend to the top of the female poker player hierarchy in the very near future. Get an in depth review on Titan Poker on our Review Section.