Transgender women who have reached puberty will not be allowed to compete in women’s golf tournaments organized by the R&A from the start of 2025.
The IR&A, St Andrews’ golf governing body, has revised its rules on gender policy following “extensive consultation” with medical and scientific experts.
It comes after the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) and the United States Golf Association (USGA). they are revising their gender policies this month to exclude players who have reached the age of majority in women’s events.
“Evidence suggests that golf is a gender-biased sport where male puberty confers a performance advantage,” the R&A said.
The IR&A, which governs the rules of golf outside the United States and Mexico, oversees women’s tournaments including the Women’s Open.
Chief executive Martin Slumbers said the R&A “has a duty to ensure that in our top competitions players can compete fairly and equally”.
“We carefully reviewed the best medical and scientific advice related to the participation of transgender players in high-level and premier golf tournaments and decided that revising our entry conditions to maintain the integrity of our female and elite amateur championships is the best thing to do,” Slumbers said.
The governing bodies of sports including swimming and athletics have banned transgender women from competing in the women’s division at the highest level if they have transitioned.
