Transgender golfer Hailey Davidson has faced backlash for competing at the LPGA Tour’s Q School.
Davidson booked her spot in the next round of the tour’s Q School after finishing tied for 42nd at Rancho Mirage in California at the weekend. She had to finish among the top 95 golfers during the LPGA Q-Series: Pre-Qualifying Stage to move on to the next stage.
She will tee it up at the qualifying tournament on October 15 to 18 at Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Florida, where if she finished among the top number of players she can advance to the final qualifying tournament.
The final qualifier held in December in Mobile, Alabama will see players compete for status on the Epson Tour – the official developmental golf tour of the LPGA Tour.
Yet, Davidson’s ability to compete in Q School has faced criticism from many on social media, including former LPGA Tour player Amy Olson.
Transgender golfer Hailey Davidson (left) faced criticism from retired player Amy Olson (right) for trying to get her LPGA Tour card at Q School
Olson, who has 13 top-10 finishes on the Tour, took to X, formerly known as Twitter , to brand Davidson’s inclusion as ‘unfair.’
‘Unfair,’ Olson posted in response to a video of Davidson competing shared by Riley Gaines.
‘These women have worked too hard and too long to have to stand by and watch a man compete for and take their spot. The only fair path forward is a policy based on sex, not gender.’
Olson retired from the LPGA Tour in May to focus on motherhood after welcoming her daughter Carly Gray Olson, on September 15. She even played the 2023 US Women’s Open at Pebble Beach while seven months pregnant.
Davidson was banned from competing in NXXT Golf tournaments earlier this year but is still permitted to play on the LPGA Tour.
According to the LPGA, they have an inclusion policy for transgender athletes who undergo surgery after male puberty.
The LPGA Tour removed its requirement for golfers to be ‘female at birth’ in a policy change in 2010.
They require players to submit a written declaration stating that they identify as female, proof of gender reassignment surgery, and evidence of at least one year of hormonal therapy maintaining testosterone levels at a specified range.
Davidson clinched a spot as first alternate for the US Women’s Open earlier this year in May, which also sparked backlash from a female professional.
Olson, who has 13 top-10 finishes on the Tour, branded Davidson’s inclusion as ‘unfair’
The former professional retired from the LPGA Tour in May to focus on motherhood
One of the female golfers who competed in the US Open qualifier in Florida claimed the decision to allow Davidson to compete in qualifying and potentially have a shot at the major was unjust.
‘It is not fair,’ the player, who chose to remain anonymous, told OutKick’s Mark Harris when asked if she believes it is fair for trans golfers to compete in women’s events.
‘There’s not any other way to explain it [other] than if you neuter a male dog, it’s still a male dog. We never call them [a] female dog.
‘I believe if transgender golf is getting more attention, aka popular, then let’s do [a] trans open for them.’
The player recalled one moment from the qualifying event when Davidson holed out from 40 feet off the green and celebrated by saying, ‘f*** yeah,’ in the ‘lowest male tone’ she had heard all day.
Davidson appeared to hit back at her critics earlier this month as she hurled a shocking insult at her competitors.
‘I will never understand athletes who blame a transgender competitor on their own athletic failures,’ she posted on her Instagram.
‘If you don’t take accountability for your failures then you will never actually be good enough to make it.’
According to the LPGA, they have an inclusion policy for transgender athletes who undergo surgery after male puberty
Davidson is seen in 2015, prior to transitioning
Davidson had played on the NXXT – a women’s professional mini tour in Florida – and won the Women’s Classic at Mission Inn Resort and Club, an event on the circuit near Orlando in January.
The victory allowed the Scot to take a step closer to the LPGA with the NXXT awarding its top five players with exemptions to the Epson Tour – a step below the top tier of the women’s game.
The tour then announced on International Women’s Day that it had reversed its gender policy and that, effective immediately, competitors must be a biological female at birth to participate.
Davidson last competed as a male golfer in 2015, after which, she began hormone therapy treatments and underwent gender reassignment surgery in 2021 .
