Legendary sports columnist Art Spander has had the kind of career that most entering the sports media industry can only dream of, recently covering his 183rd major championship in golf at the 2025 U.S. Open from Oakmont Country Club. And while health issues will likely make this year’s U.S. Open the final major championship he covers, he is quite appreciative of all that he has had the chance to see while covering the sport.
Spander is as experienced as it gets for a sports columnist, covering 60 Rose Bowls, over 50 Masters, over 40 Super Bowls, over 30 Final Fours, nearly 20 World Series, and a few Olympic Games over the course of his illustrious career that dates back to a role as a a news writer for United Press International in 1960.
At 86 years of age, Spander is still going strong. Though, health issues have led to some significant challenges, which was detailed in a recent feature of Spander’s career by Brendan Quinn of The Athletic.
Spander has accomplished all that he has in the sports media industry despite being blinded in his left eye at the age of 8. And now, Spander has just 8-to-10 percent vision in his right eye due to glaucoma that has worsened over time.
Despite this, Spander was present with his wife, Liz Spander, at the U.S. Open media center, to cover the event for his personal website, which Liz played a significant part in. Due to his eye condition, Art can no longer see smaller words on a computer screen. So it was actually Liz who wrote the columns based on what Art told her to type.
At his advanced age and his deteriorating vision, Spander isn’t oblivious to the fact that the end of his career is near. But ultimately, he remains grateful that Liz allowed him to be in attendance at Oakmont Country Club to cover the 2025 event.
“I’m here and I’m very fortunate,” Art told Brendan Quinn. “Because she allows me to be.”
Meanwhile, Liz is happy to help Art continue doing what he loves. However, she made it clear to him that this should be his last time covering a major championship.
“The last one,” Liz said to Art, transcribed by Quinn. “He knows that, I think. His eye really seems to have gotten worse. Even just this week. Glaucoma is just taking over. It’s a shame. He loves to read. He loves to write. He can’t do either.”
Whether Spander ultimately ends up covering any more major championships or not, his undeniable passion for the sport should certainly be celebrated by golf fans and his peers in the golf media space.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.