Wednesday 28 December 2016 21:04, UK
From Ryder Cup heroes to one of golf's all-time greats, 2016 saw us say goodbye to a number of memorable figures in the sport's history.
Arnold Palmer, widely regarded as golf's first superstar, passed away just days before the Ryder Cup following heart complications.
'The King' thrilled fans worldwide during a glittering career which saw him amass 95 worldwide titles, including 62 PGA Tour wins and seven major championships.
Palmer became one of the sport's 'Big Three' as his rivalry with Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player dominated golf throughout the 1960s and 70s, with the American winning The Masters four times.
The 87-year-old had been troubled by ill health over the last year, with Palmer too frail to hit his ceremonial tee-shot at this year's Masters.
Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy led the Palmer tributes, with Nicklaus later dedicating the 41st Ryder Cup in his friend's memory.
The Irishman is best remembered for the stunning two-iron to the 18th pin during the 1989 Ryder Cup, which saw him beat Fred Couples and help Europe retain the trophy with a 14-14 draw at The Belfry.
The 67-year-old won four times during a lengthy spell on the European Tour, before claiming back-to-back British Seniors Open titles on home soil in 1999 and 2000.
O'Connor was the nephew of Christy O'Connor Snr, referred to in his home country as "Himself", who died five months later aged 91.
O'Connor Snr played in 10 consecutive Ryder Cup tournaments between 1955 and 1973 and finished joint runner-up in the 1965 Open Championship, before going on to win the Senior PGA Championship six times.
Darren Clarke labelled O'Connor as "the father of Irish golf", with the Irishman inducted in to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2009.
Meanwhile, black ribbons were warn during the second round of the Dubai Desert Classic in memory of five-time major-winning caddie Dave Renwick, who lost his battle with cancer in February aged 62.
Renwick was alongside Jose Maria Olazabal for his Masters win in 1994 and was on Steve Elkington's bag for his PGA Championship victory a year later, before working on all three of Vijay Singh's major titles.
One of Seve Ballesteros' former caddies, Pedro Ramseyer, passed away shortly before he was due to be assisting Carlos Pigem at the Alfred Dunhill Championship.
The 60-year-old spent three years with Ballesteros and worked with numerous players during a lengthy career, including Henrik Stenson, Angel Cabrera and Mark Foster.
A week later, Max Zechmann collapsed and later died while caddieing for Anne-Lise Caudal during the opening round of the Ladies European Tour's season-ending Omega Dubai Ladies Masters.
Play was suspended for the day and the tournament was reduced to 54 holes as a result of the 55-year-old's death, with European Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjorn among those to pay tribute to the Austrian.
Elsewhere in the women's game, three-time LPGA Tour winner Dawn Coe-Jones passed away aged just 56.
The Canadian Golf Hall of Famer had been suffering from bone cancer, having made 44 career top-10 finishes during an impressive career.
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