THE Oxfordshire has lost the Benson & Hedges Golf International, as forecast by the Oxford Mail a month ago.
The tournament will move to the Belfry in 2000 for its 30th anniversary, with prize money increasing from £800,000 to £1m.
It's a big blow for the Rees Jones-designed course near Thame, which had been under contract to stage the event next year.
The tournament has been moved partly to boost Europe's Ryder Cup hopes with the Belfry, which is also the headquarters for the PGA, hosting the Ryder Cup in 2001.
The B&H International has been played at The Oxfordshire every May for the past four years, where it has been plagued by bad weather. This year, more than 40,000 fans flocked to the course to watch Colin Montgomerie's triumph.
Story date: Wednesday 10 November
Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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