Transgender Golfer Booted After Woman's Pro Tour Adopts 'Biological At Birth' Rules
“Effective immediately, I have been removed (banned) from the next 3 NXXT tournaments that I already signed up for and been approved to play,” wrote transgender golfer Hailey Davidson last week.
The message came after he/she was removed from the NXXT Women's Pro Tour, who has now announced that participants must be “a biological female at birth” to participate in its events, according to Fox News and the NY Post.
Davidson expressed his/her discontent because he/she was already crushing the woman's field: “They changed their policy mid season, after me signing up already and being 2nd in Player of the Year race.”
The tour faced massive backlash after Davidson won a tournament earlier this year that attracted significant media attention.
NXXT GOLF CEO Stuart McKinnon said: “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.”
“Our revised policy is a reflection of our unwavering commitment to celebrating and protecting the achievements and opportunities of female athletes. 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.”
Recall, we reported back in January that Davidson had stepped in to win a women's tournament in Florida, bringing with him her "dreams of making it to the LPGA tour".
30 year old Davidson, born a man, won the NXXT Women’s Classic at the Mission Inn Resort and Club near Orlando earlier this year.
Davidson shot one over 73 and finished the three round tournament +4, which was enough to take the trophy. Davidson was three shots behind an actual woman the next best golfer before forcing a playoff and winning.
NXXT said at the time: “The Tour’s mission is to prepare the world’s best young women professional golfers for a successful career on the LPGA Tour" and that the tour is focused on "elevating women's golf".
The Post wrote that Davidson's recent victory placed her first on the NXXT tour leaderboard with a leading score of 1320, 150 points ahead of her closest competitor. Since November, she has secured two top-2 finishes in the league's five tournaments, along with seventh and ninth place results.
And it isn't just bragging rights that Davidson won: he/she was entitled to $1,576.51 in prize money, which adds to her career total which currently stands at $5,801.89 over the course of eight events.
To qualify for two exemptions to the Epson Tour, Davidson, transitioning from male to female, needed LPGA approval. Discussions began in 2016, but eligibility was granted in 2021 after undergoing Hormone Replacement Therapy for over five years and completing gender reassignment surgery, as indicated in an October 2022 social media post.