Former LPGA Tour golfer Amy Olson called Hailey Davidson’s inclusion in the women’s side of the sport “unfair” as the transgender female attempts to make the tour.
Davidson was among the top golfers who punched their ticket to the next stage of Q School in hopes of earning an LPGA Tour card.
Davidson finished tied for 42nd at Rancho Mirage, shooting 4-under par, and well off the pace of leader Ashley Menne, who was 16-under.
Olson, who retired from professional golf in April, wrote her opinion of Davidson trying to make the tour.
“Unfair. These women have worked too hard and too long to have to stand by and watch a man compete for and take their spot,” Olson wrote on X.
“The only fair path forward is a policy based on sex, not gender.”
Davidson now moves on to the qualifying tournament, which will be held at Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Florida, on Oct. 15-18.
Davidson can advance to the final qualifying tournament in Mobile, Alabama, in December.
Davidson, who nearly qualified for the U.S. Women’s Open earlier this year, has caused controversy within the sport, particularly after comments about athletes who believe trans inclusion is unfair in women’s sports.
“I will never understand athletes who blame a transgender competitor on their own athletic failures,” Davidson wrote on Instagram while practicing for Q School. “If you don’t take accountability for your failures then you will never actually be good enough to make it.”