For more than four decades, Rory Spears was a ubiquitous presence on Chicago sports radio, covering all kinds of professional sports as an on-air reporter and behind-the-scenes producer — with an extra emphasis on the sport about which he was most passionate, golf.
“He worked hard and hustled to get many freelance sports gigs, covering every Chicago professional sports team in town,” said longtime Chicago-area sports broadcaster Steve Kashul, who hosts “The Golf Scene” TV show. “However, his real passion was golf, and over the past 10 years, no one covered the local golf scene as thoroughly or as well as Rory.”
Spears, 65, died April 2 at his Arlington Heights home, said his brother, Reid. Spears recently had been feeling ill, his brother said, and he had been very open about his battle with severe diabetes, which had been diagnosed last summer.
Born in Waukegan, Spears grew up in Prospect Heights and graduated from Hersey High School in Arlington Heights. Spears first attended Aurora College — now known as Aurora University — before transferring to the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in 1982.
While growing up, Spears worked at Rob Roy Golf Course in Prospect Heights for eight years in such decidedly unglamorous jobs as a golf ball washer, and he worked for another two years at Chevy Chase Country Club in Wheeling.
Once he finished college, he decided to make sports journalism his career, and early on he built a reputation as a dependable freelancer for news sources far and wide, including providing radio feeds for out-of-town stations, his brother said.
In the mid-1980s, Spears reported sports for west suburban radio station WKDC-AM 1530 — later WJJG-AM 1530 and now WCKG-AM 1530 — among other outlets. Then in 1992, Spears was part of the first staff of WSCR-AM 670, Chicago’s first all-sports station, which initially was located down the dial at 820.
At The Score, Spears did some sports reporting — including on golf — some in-studio producing and occasionally picked up a fill-in on-air shift, his brother said.
Spears left The Score after about five years but continued working for other stations, including teaming up in 1996 with the late longtime Chicago-area sports journalist Jerry Kuc on northwest suburban WCBR-FM 92.7 to rate the best local public golf courses. In 2001, Spears and Kuc began hosting a weekly one-hour sports talk show on WJJG titled “Sports Watch.”
In 2003, Spears branched off on his own, hosting a weekly sports talk show on WJJG called “Spears on Sports.”
One important part of Spears’ broadcasting career was cohosting the weekly in-season golf talk show “Golfers on Golf,” which initially aired on WJJG before moving to WSBC-AM 1240 and then to WNDZ-AM 750. Spears also enjoyed writing for Chicagoland Golf magazine and the Chicago District Golf Association’s magazine, and he produced all content for the “Golfers on Golf” website, which offers local and national golf information year-round.
“Rory loved being a journalist with a passion for sports, and he especially enjoyed sharing the game of golf with others,” said “Golfers on Golf” cohost Ed Stevenson, who as an executive adviser to the DuPage County Forest Preserve District’s executive director oversees the district’s three golf courses. “He was one of the last few reporters putting a spotlight on the Chicagoland golf community.
“In an increasingly remote world, you could count on Rory to show up in person to get the story. He took pride in breaking news and being the go-to source for the latest stories. Simply put, if industry professionals and media peers wanted to know what’s going on with golf in Illinois and beyond, they’d go ask Rory.”
Former Chicago Tribune golf writer Ed Sherman said that at sporting events, “Rory was one of those guys who always was there.”
“If there was a game in Chicago, and especially a golf tournament, you could count on seeing Rory,” Sherman said. “And he always would be happy to see you. When I heard of his passing, the first thing I thought was how strange it will feel to no longer see Rory at a game or tournament. I am sure the other sports media people in town will feel the same way.”
Spears’ love for golf extended beyond covering it as a reporter. He prided himself on having played more than 400 courses in 32 states — including recording a hole-in-one years ago at one of the Pinehurst golf courses in North Carolina — and he provided golf course management and communications consulting.
That meant bringing his knowledge to golf course clients about how to manage their departments and operations, including everything from preparing courses for public use to presenting their pro shops, his brother said.
“It is an understatement to say that Rory had a passion for golf,” Sherman said. “He loved everything about the game, and it went beyond playing. And make no mistake, Rory played everywhere and anywhere all over the country.
“He would enthusiastically talk about equipment or a new course somewhere or the latest development in the industry. More than anything else, he just loved being around golf and the people in golf.”
Most recently, Spears had been working at Heritage Oaks Golf Club in Northbrook and at Medinah Country Club.
“He was the epitome of somebody who was able to take his passion and make a career out of it,” Reid Spears said.
In addition to his brother, Spears is survived by his parents, Ralph and Geraldine. Services were held.
Bob Goldsborough is a freelance reporter.
Originally Published: April 9, 2025 at 11:36 AM CDT
