In one of my Sports Illustrated copies at the end of the year, I noticed some obituaries and thought, ‘My, that’s a lot of golfers gone from the sports world in 2011.’

As I searched for those in other sports who had passed on, I realized that I was in S.I.’s superb golf section.

The magazine contained all obits in its next issue, including those of golf’s Severiano Ballesteros and the great Dave Hill (again).

Hill is important to me because he won the Philadelphia Golf Classic back in the late ’60s on the weekend my daughter was born, causing me to miss her birth. Everybody– mother, father and newborn child were and still are fine.

I had a chance to watch Ballesteros in at least one – and possibly two – PGA championships in Birmingham, Ala.

Mr. Philadelphia, Joe Frazier, was one of our losses the past year.

I never met Smokin’ Joe, but my wife, Ronnie, did. He came to her office while working for a delivery service after he won Olympic Gold, but before he became heavyweight champion.

His left hook that crushed Muhammad Ali in their first fight is my all-time favorite blow.

Auto racing’s biggest loss was two-time Indy 500 winner Dan Wheldon.

The Baltimore Colts family suffered two losses in the colossal and colossally entertaining Bubba Smith and maybe the greatest tight end ever, John Mackey.

The San Francisco 49ers’ Joe Perry and John Henry Johnson, a pair of Hall of Fame runners, were one half of the 49ers’ Million Dollar Backfield.

Hall of Famer Ollie Matson of the Cardinals was Devin Hester in a tailback’s body He also won two medals in track at the ’52 Olympics (400 meters and relay).

Other former NFL stars gone include Eagles tight end Pete Pihos, Raiders defensive tackle Chester McGlockton, Lee Roy Selmon of the Buccaneers, Bills center Kent Hull, Packers guard Gale Gillingham and the Giants defensive end Andy Robustelli.

I would be remiss if I did not include embattled coach and owner Al Davis of the Raiders.

Baseball’s losses included Duke Snider, Matty Alou, Harmon Killebrew, Marty Marion and Jim Northrup.

Locally, the big story was the loss of N.C. State’s Lorenzo Charles. Charles’ dunk to beat Houston for the 1983 NCAA title will always be a cherished memory.

Hall of Famer “Easy” Ed Macauley was part of the deal in which the Boston Celtics gained Bill Russell’s rights.

The rest, they like to say, is history.

Ron Grillo