LPGA disregards female players and allows trans Hailey Davidson to compete

The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) has disregarded the claims of 275 golfers and will allow  trans player Hailey Davidson to compete in the LPGA Qualifying Series, which is being contested this week.

The plaintiffs sent a letter to the LPGA criticizing the association for letting Davidson participate against them, claiming he is a "biological male" whose physical abilities are superior to their own, making it easier for him to "qualify, compete and win in women's golf."

"A total of 246 players will compete this week in the LPGA Qualifying Series in hopes of punching their ticket to December's Q-School finals to earn the chance to earn an LPGA card," she wrote, in remarks picked up by OutKick. "Among the 246 players is transgender golfer Hailey Davidson, whose inclusion may align with the LPGA's current gender policy, but not with the vast majority of her fellow competitors."

"We all know that there can be no equal sporting opportunities for women without a separate women's golf category. Yet the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) continues to propagate a policy that allows male athletes to qualify, compete and win in women's golf, despite the growing rejection by various national and international sporting bodies and state legislatures of these unfair and biased policies that disadvantage female athletes," they added.

The letter: "There is no way to turn a man into a woman"

The 275 plaintiffs went a step further, asserting that gender "is essential to the integrity and fairness of women's golf," concluding with several technicalities that strengthen their claims: "The male advantage in driving the ball is estimated to be around a 30% performance advantage; this is a huge difference in the context of the sport. Anatomical differences between men and women affect clubhead speed and consistency regulation in ball contact. Women have higher average heart rates and face greater physiological demands during play, especially at high altitudes. Anatomical differences are not eliminated by male testosterone suppression. There is no way to turn a man into a woman. Being a woman does not equate to being a man with reduced strength."

In January, Davidson won the women's NXXT Women's Classic golf tournament. The result sparked a wave of criticism against the NXXT Women's Pro Tour, which, months later, ended up banning trans athletes from participating in women's categories.

Davidson's case is one more in the list of trans athletes who not only participate in women's categories, but win tournaments. Successful sportswomen such as Martina Navratilova, Donna de Varona and Benita Fitzgerald Brown are some of the critical faces against trans participation in women's sports.