Former LPGA Tour golfer Amy Olson is among critics calling out organizers for allowing a male player to compete in a major women’s golf tournament.
Olson called Hailey Davidson’s inclusion in the women’s side of the sport “unfair” as the male player attempts to make the LPGA Tour.
Davidson is a middle-aged man who claims to be a “transgender woman.”
He was among the top female golfers who punched their ticket to the next stage of Q School.
Those competing in the Q School are hoping to earn an LPGA Tour card.
However, cards are limited, meaning Davidson will take a spot from a real female player if he qualifies.
Davidson finished tied for 42nd at Rancho Mirage.
He shot 4-under par and was well off the pace of leader Ashley Menne who was 16-under.
In a social media post, Olson, a real woman who retired from professional golf in April, responded to news that Davidson is trying to make the tour.
“Unfair,” Olson blasted in a post on X.
“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.”
Davidson now moves on to the qualifying tournament.
It will be held at Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Florida, on October 15-18.
He can advance to December’s final qualifying tournament in Mobile, Alabama.
Davidson, who nearly qualified for the U.S. Women’s Open earlier this year, has caused controversy within the sport.
He recently caused outrage with comments over the backlash to male boxers competing against women at the Paris Olympics.
As Slay News reported, he blasted female athletes who complain about being forced to compete against transgenders.
In an Instagram post, while practicing for Q School, Davidson wrote:
“I will never understand athletes who blame a transgender competitor on their own athletic failures.
“If you don’t take accountability for your failures then you will never actually be good enough to make it.”
