Gary Orr will not be defending his British Masters title which begins at Woburn tomorrow.The Scot withdrew with a bad stomach upset.
"I don't know whether it's a bug or food poisoning but I've had pretty bad sickness and diarrhoea," said 34-year-old Scot today.
"I didn't get much sleep so there was no way I was going to be able to play in the pro-am and it became pretty obvious I wouldn't be fit to play in the tournament either.
"I was looking forward to defending the title."
Orr hopes to be fit for next week's English Open. His place has been taken by English rookie Sam Walker, who was expecting to be playing on the Challenge Tour this week. Instead he lines up in a field which includestop trio Colin Montgomerie, Lee Westwood and Darren Clarke.
Padraig Harrington was another casualty forced to miss the event at Woburn. The Dubliner withdrew due to the recurrence of an ankle injury and will rest until the US Open which starts in two weeks time.