Female Golfers Protest Davidson, Trans Competitors

Transgender golfer Hailey Davidson will compete in this week's LPGA Qualifying Series despite complaints by more than 275 female golfers voicing their concerns over her and other transgender athletes being included in professional competition.

The golfers, with the Independent Women's Forum, sent letters to the LPGA, the United States Golf Association, and the International Golf Federation back in August to voice their concerns before Davidson advanced through the pre-qualifying stage of qualifying school (Q-School), where Davidson finished in a tie for 42nd place, reported OutKick, which obtained a copy of the letters. 

This week, Davidson will compete in a 246-player field in hopes of advancing to the final stage of Q-School in December, where the golfers hope to earn an LPGA card. 

The LPGA and USGA have adopted gender policies that allow biological males to compete in the female divisions, provided they have undergone gender reassignment surgery and have met hormonal therapy requirements. 

Davidson underwent the surgery in 2021 and has met the leagues' eligibility requirements. 

Lauren Miller, a professional golfer fighting against the rule, told OutKick's Dan Dakich that she never thought she would be competing against a biological male. 

"I've been talking to my parents about it, and they can't believe they have a daughter who is having to go through this," she said. "It's truly shocking to realize kind of where we are today and that this is the state of the world."

In their letter, the female golfers wrote that "there can be no equal athletic opportunity for women without a separate female golf category," but "the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) continues to propagate a policy that allows male athletes to qualify, compete and win in women’s golf, even as several national and international governing bodies of sport and state legislatures increasingly reject these unjust and inequitable policies that harm female athletes."

Further, it noted that the LPGA's policy, "Does not explicitly state eligibility based on sex."

"It is essential for the integrity and fairness of women’s golf to have a clear and consistent participation policy in place based on a player’s immutable sex," the letter stated. "There are differences between the sexes — female and male — that specifically affect our sport of golf."

There are anatomical differences, the golfer added, that "affect clubhead speed and regulating consistency at ball contact."

Women also "have higher mean heart rates and encounter greater physiological demands while playing, especially at high altitudes," the letter stated. "The anatomical differences are not removed with male testosterone suppression. There is no way to turn a male into a female. Being female is not equated to being male with a reduction in strength."

The golfers also included several points to describe the differences between male and female golfers, and demanded that the LPGA "repeal all policies and rules that allow male golfers to participate in women's golf events."

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