A women’s golf league has slammed the door on a man who wanted to use his showing on the tour as a stepping stone to the LPGA.
The ruling comes about two months after Hailey Davidson, who had been playing golf as a man until 2015 before becoming a transgendered golfer, attracted controversy after winning a NXXT golf tour tournament in January, according to the Associated Press.
The NXXT tour can become a ladder to the LPGA because the top golfers on the NXXT leaderboard when the season ends will be able to compete in the Epson Tour, which is a qualifying tour one step below the LPGA.
“As we navigate through the evolving landscape of sports, it is crucial to uphold the competitive integrity that is the cornerstone of women’s sports,” NXXT Golf CEO Stuart McKinnon said in a statement, according to Golfweek.
“Our revised policy is a reflection of our unwavering commitment to celebrating and protecting the achievements and opportunities of female athletes,” he said.
“Protected categories are a fundamental aspect of sports at all levels, and it is essential for our Tour to uphold these categories for biological females, ensuring a level playing field,” he said.
Golfweek reported that after Davidson won his victory in January, the tour conducted an anonymous poll to offer players input into the tour’s gender policy. Results of the poll were not released.
Sanity is creeping back in to women’s sports.https://t.co/rkeiyTywSC
— Michael R Shannon (@ReluctantUser2) March 9, 2024
Davidson said the ruling undercut his plans.
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“Effective immediately, I have been removed (banned) from the next 3 NXXT tournaments that I already signed up for and been approved to play,” Davidson wrote on Instagram Stories, according to Fox News.
“They changed their policy mid season, after me signing up already and being 2nd in Player of the Year race,” he wrote.
In a recent social media post, Davidson said the LPGA policy that allows transgender golfers was tough, as was the competition.
“I would semi understand all the hate and threats if there were a ton of transgender women out there dominating at all levels but unfortunately that just isnt the case nor has it been since the policy went into place,” Davidson had previously written on Instagram.
“When the guidelines are strict enough, they do not allow for an advantage but at the same time, fully banning a group of people based in hypotheticals is far from okay and honestly the amount of hypotheticals I get asked is just laughable with what some people think can happen,” he wrote.
Transgender golfer Hailey Davidson has been banned from the NXXT Golf women’s tour.
They changed their rules on International Women’s Day.
I think this is fair. Hailey had decades before her transition, as a man, where she grew faster than a woman, meaning she has an unfair… pic.twitter.com/A9nhnGCDYB
— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) March 9, 2024
Davidson has dismissed criticism of his participation in female sports as ‘transphobia,” according to the Daily Mail.
“I’ve seen that it’s not about protecting women’s sports or me having an advantage, it’s just that you don’t like trans people,” he said.
