Australian trans golfer Breanna Gill will be banned from the WPGA Tour of Australasia after a recent change to its eligibility rules.
Gill, 43, has been part of the WPGA Tour for eight years and last year won the Australian Women’s Classic title.
However, the WPGA has followed the trend of other golf tours around the world and made a radical change to the eligibility requirements.
New rules taking effect Jan. 1 now require players to be assigned female at birth or have transitioned to female before going through male puberty to compete on the women’s WPGA tour.
“Previously, ‘transitional’ female athletes were allowed to play on the Tour if they met additional eligibility requirements, however, effective January 1, 2025, details regarding this will change,” a statement on the site read. WPGA website.
‘Following the leadership of the Global Tours and decisions guided by medical, scientific, legal expertise and consultation with its members, the eligibility requirements of the WPGA Tour of Australasia will now mirror those of the LPGA Tour with membership eligibility for those who are assign women at birth or having undergone a transition before puberty.
Australian transgender golfer Breanna Gill (pictured winning the 2023 Australian Women’s Classic) will begin the WPGA Tour of Australasia.
The 43-year-old golfer has been part of the WPGA Tour for eight years
‘As has been the case in numerous areas, the WPGA Tour of Australasia has been guided by the Global Tours, while making a final decision applicable to its events at Board level to ensure uniformity in women’s golf while ensuring the integrity and competitive fairness of women’s golf. professional golf at the highest level.’
The decision comes after the LPGA Tour announced a dramatic change to its gender policy in early December.
The USGA, led by CEO and former LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan, issued a similar statement outlining the same policy changes.
The LPGA and USGA say their policies were aimed at including gender identities and expressions while striving for fairness in competition.
The LPGA said its working group of experts warned that the effects of male puberty allowed for competitive advantages in golf compared to players who had not gone through puberty.
The announcement came just two days after Commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan announced that she will resign in January.
“Our policy reflects a broad, inclusive and science-based approach,” said Marcoux Samaan, via the Associated Press.
“The policy represents our continued commitment to ensuring that everyone feels welcome within our organization, while preserving the fairness and competitive equity of our elite competitions.”
Transgender golfer Hailey Davidson had faced criticism for competing against biological women
Like Gill, the updated policies would rule out the eligibility of trans golfer Hailey Davidson, who has been trying to earn her professional status on the women’s tour amid criticism and opposition from nearly 300 rival players.
The 31-year-old missed qualifying for this year’s US Women’s Open by one shot and came up short at the LPGA Q-school.
Davidson last competed as a men’s golfer in 2015, after which he began hormone therapy treatments and underwent gender reassignment surgery in 2021.
She was banned from competing in tournaments on NXXT Golf, a women’s professional mini-tour, earlier this year after winning the Women’s Classic at Mission Inn Resort and Club, a circuit event near Orlando, in January.
The victory allowed the Scot to take another step towards the LPGA and the NXXT granted its five best players exemptions to the Epson Tour, one step below the top tier of women’s soccer.
However, the circuit later announced on International Women’s Day that it had reversed its gender policy and that, with immediate effect, competitors had to be biologically female at birth to participate.
While Davidson failed to clinch her LPGA Tour card this year, she will no longer have a second chance next season as the new policy would apply not only to the LPGA Tour, but also to the Epson Tour, the Ladies European Tour and the classification for tours.