Transgender golfer Hailey Davidson WINS Florida tournament and is now set to receive one of five women’s places on prestigious tour aimed at providing ‘growth opportunities’ for female players

A transgender golfer has managed to secure her place on a prestigious tour specifically designed to provide ‘growth opportunities’ for female players.

Hailey Davidson, 30, who was born in Scotland but now lives in Florida, has long aspired to become the first transgender woman to earn a Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) tour card – and has moved one step closer to her goal.

Davidson won the NXXT Women’s Classic at Mission Inn Resort and Club near Orlando, Florida.

Securing the win gives Davidson access to the Epson Tour, which awards exemptions to their top five players.

The tour is the qualifying tour for the LPGA, the Tour Card that Davidson is aiming for.

The LPGA Tour in 2010 removed the requirement that golfers be “female at birth.”

However, Davidson’s presence as a trans woman removes one of those stains from a cisgender woman.

The irony of Davidson’s victory is that the exemptions were introduced specifically to allow female golfers to compete on the Epson Tour and to provide “unparalleled professional growth opportunities for female golfers.”

Davidson praised her victory on

“Most importantly, I would like to thank everyone who has supported me, from my fellow competitors to all of you who I may or may not have had the opportunity to meet. I thank you all for helping me wade through all the hate and making me feel loved.”

In August 2022, Wimbledon champion tennis player Andy Murray’s mother, Judy Murray, said Davidson’s position was completely unfair to other biological women.

‘Not fair at all. Protect women’s sports. Listen to the facts, the scientists and the doctors. This is wrong,” she tweeted.

Murray was one of several social media users commenting on Davidson possibly earning her LPGA tour card.

Davidson has dismissed criticism of her participation in women’s sports as ‘transphobia’.

Although the best male golfers can typically hit the ball further than their female counterparts, Davidson claims that the majority of criticism surrounding her entry into the women’s circuit is transphobic rather than genuine dialogue about the sport.

Davidson said that after her transition, she now hits the ball 15 mph slower.

“I’ve seen that it’s not about protecting women’s sports or me having an advantage, it’s about not liking transgender people,” Davidson said during an interview on the Like It Is podcast.

‘It’s very sad that it comes down to that. That’s what I’ve learned in recent months.’

The NXXT, Epson Tour and LPGA all have strict policies allowing trans women to compete alongside those born female.

“The LPGA has a comprehensive gender policy that allows transgender athletes, including those who have transitioned from male to female, to compete in its events. This policy requires transgender athletes to provide a declaration of their gender identity, proof of gender reassignment surgery and proof of at least one year of hormonal therapy that maintains testosterone levels within a certain range.

“It also includes provisions for confidentiality and the recognition of gender verification decisions made by other golf tours or sporting authorities,” NXXT Tour Director Bennett Noe said in a statement.

“This alignment between the NXXT, LPGA, Epson Tour and USGA ensures a consistent approach to transgender athletes, emphasizing fair competition and integrity in the sport.”

Davidson last competed as a male golfer in 2015, before beginning hormone therapy treatments and undergoing gender reassignment surgery in 2021.

“I know I have what it takes to be among professional golfers on the LPGA/PGA/Champions Tour over the years and remain very competitive with them all,” Davidson said in 2021 while trying to raise money for the qualifying school.

“While I know I have the talent and mental game to make a career out of playing, what’s really holding me back is the upfront costs of tournaments and practice fees.”

Although Davidson failed to make the qualifiers that year, he remained competitive in other tournaments, finishing one match just three shots behind 2010 US Women’s Open champion Paula Creamer.

Davidson’s success comes amid a culture war in America over regulations to allow transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports.

Although professional organizations such as the LPGA and PGA established their own rules and regulations many years ago, debates have recently erupted across the country over athletes competing in high school and college.

The issue took center stage in 2022 when UPenn swimmer Lia Thomas, who began competing in women’s swimming a year and a half after transferring.

Thomas went on to break several women’s records, much to the dismay of some of her teammates, and the NCAA and US Swimming organizations were criticized for allowing Thomas to compete.

Professional swimming association FINA has since effectively banned trans women from competing in the sport, saying they must have started transitioning before puberty began, which is illegal or nearly impossible to do in most of the US.

Eighteen states have now banned transgender students from participating in girls’ sports.

A notable example is Ohio, which has passed a bill requiring students accused of being transgender to provide a doctor’s note detailing their sexual anatomy, their testosterone levels and their genetic makeup.

In New Jersey, Republican lawmakers proposed the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act, which would require female student-athletes to verify the nature of their genitals in order to compete.

The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Michael Testa, compared genitalia checks to random drug tests that college athletes are subjected to, and said he didn’t expect any problems with angry parents accusing girls of being transgender.