The turf industry is mourning the death of Bobby McDougall who died on March 29 after a short illness.

Bobby, (42), was Ground Maintenance Technical Officer at Glasgow Life, a position he had held since May 2023.

Despite his relatively young age, Bobby held a variety of posts in Scotland, England and Norway, all related to sports turf.

A third-generation greenkeeper, Bobby followed in the footsteps of his dad, Allan McDougall, a former Course Manager at Royal Mid Surrey Golf Club and his grandfather, Bob McDougall, formerly of Hilton Park Golf Club, Glasgow.

Bobby attended Elmwood College, Fife and his greenkeeping career spanned 11 years, mostly at Surrey courses- Royal Mid Surrey, Queenwood, and Walton Heath, but included 2½ years as Deputy Course Manager at Miklagard Golf in Oslo.

It was a natural step for Bobby to move into technical sales with promoted roles at Aitkens, Indigrow and Souters in Glasgow before heading to Fairways Sportsground, specialists in sports construction. Bobby then moved into the world of maintenance machinery sales, joining Fairways GM as Commercial Sales Manager and then, Infinicut, as Territory Sales Manager.

Outside work, aside from being a dedicated family man, Bobby held a life-long passion for music. His particular focus was heavy metal where he was a well- known figure on the Scottish scene, with spells as a lead singer, playing live gigs and recording. More recently, his knowledge and contacts led him into managing bands.

He leaves two children, his mum, and his sister.

On a personal note, Turf Business would like to extend their condolences to Bobby’s friends and family at this time. We are truly devastated to hear of this sad loss. Whenever we met him he was smiling, great company and we shared some real laughter, as well as a taste in shirts. The Turf Industry will certainly feel this great loss and we are reminded that life can be short and cruel, and we must live every moment we have to the fullest, just as Bobby did.