Bobby ‘Jackie’ Leigh, one of the most prominent caddies when The European Tour was founded in 1972, has died in a Southport Nursing Home after a long battle with illness.
One of the game’s true characters, he grew up in the same Southport street next door to another legendary caddie, Alfie Fyles, and in his heyday he was the bagman for many of the game’s greats, including Major Champions Greg Norman, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player and Peter Thomson.
In 1989 he contacted glaucoma which, sadly, led to the total loss of his sight, but The Bobby Leigh Trust Fund, set up by his good friend and fellow caddie Paul Stevens, and which received significant funding from The European Tour Benevolent Fund, ensured he continued to enjoy a good quality of life in his remaining years.
