Ex-Bears QB Bobby Douglass trying his hand running Edgebrook Golf Course in Sandwich
Douglass spent seven seasons with Bears, set single-season NFL rushing record for QBs
As a former Chicago Bears quarterback, Bobby Douglass was known more for his running than for his ability to pass the ball.
That was a long time ago. But the 72-year-old wasn’t going to pass on the opportunity to run Edgebrook Golf Course in Sandwich.
“It’s kind of a challenge to me and that’s a big part of it,” said Douglass, in his first season at Edgebrook. “I have been out here almost every day and it’s been hard work, but it’s been enjoyable. Being on a golf course is not the worst thing in the world. I’m getting outdoors and seeing progress.”
Apparently, Douglass has made quite the impression in a short period of time.
Kendall Harris and Geri Benning from the Sandwich Area Chamber of Commerce said that the course is in the best condition it has been for some time. They said Sandwich residents have mentioned the positive changes and added that the new management should get the credit for the improvements.
The risk versus reward course was crafted by prolific designers Ken Killian and Dick Nugent in 1968, a year before the Bears used their second-round draft pick to take Douglass in the 1969 draft.
“We really got the course in much better shape, but we’re not finished with it yet,” Douglass said. “People have been great so far, and right now the big thing is they can go out and play a round and enjoy it because of the course.”
Douglass, who now lives in Lake Forest, was an All-American at Kansas in 1968 and finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy voting during his senior year.
Like Phil Mickelson in golf, Douglass was a rarity in the NFL being left-handed, although he had company with Ken “The Snake” Stabler entering the league about the same time.
But it wasn’t Douglass' throwing arm that made an impact. Rather, it was his legs. He led all NFL quarterbacks in rushing yards in 1972 with nearly 1,000, while scoring eight touchdowns, and finished with 2,654 yards for his career.
His 968 rushing yards in 1972 remained a league record for 34 years until Michael Vick broke it in 2006. Vick did it during the current 16-game schedule, while Douglass set the previous mark in only 14 games.
Douglass, who donned No. 10 like current Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky, spent seven seasons with the Bears and enjoyed some unforgettable moments. He gathered a bad snap on an extra point and found Hall of Famer Dick Butkus to seal a 16-15 win over the Washington Redskins in 1971. The previous year, in a November game at Wrigley Field, he tossed four TD passes in a victory over the Buffalo Bills.
He left the Bears in 1975, bouncing around with the San Diego Chargers, New Orleans Saints, Oakland Raiders and Green Bay Packers before calling it a career after the 1979 season. A brief attempt to play baseball followed with the White Sox organization.
Douglass was golfing at Edgebrook with a city official last summer and saw the potential that the golf course and its restaurant had, which resulted in his interest in taking it to the next level.
“Obviously, it’s a good area and I’ve been around Sandwich doing some appearances and playing some golf,” he said. “I’d been in the business before and saw the great layout of the course, and logistically it’s one of the only 18-hole courses in the area.”
Today he’s thriving on the golf course.
“We’re getting it back to where it’s a good golf course and those people that played it over the years are coming back,” Douglass said. “We’re trying to cater to our public out here, and from what I can tell a lot of people are enjoying the golf course.”
Former Chicago Bear QB Bobby Douglass, new general manager of the Edgebrook Golf Course in Sandwich, IL. July 29. Gary E Duncan Sr for Shaw Media
Former Chicago Bear QB Bobby Douglass, new general manager of the Edgebrook Golf Course in Sandwich, IL. July 29. Gary E Duncan Sr for Shaw Media
Former Chicago Bear QB Bobby Douglass, new general manager of the Edgebrook Golf Course in Sandwich, IL. July 29. Gary E Duncan Sr for Shaw Media