A professional female disc golf player boldly refused to compete against a male transgender opponent in a recent tournament, arguing the match was unfair.
The incident unfolded at the Music City Open tournament in Nashville on Friday, with female golfer Abigail Wilson walking up to the tee to drive – before suddenly stopping and proclaiming she would not compete.
“Females must be protected in our division,” Wilson said, turning to the crowd before walking off the first hole. “This is unfair. I refuse to play.”
In a statement posted to Instagram tagging President Donald Trump and others, Wilson wrote she took a stand for women understanding the move may be career-ending:
I refused to play at the Music City Open. Females deserve to have their gender protected division be protected. This is unfair. I have worked so hard to get to this point to play on the DGPT, but the sacrifice of my career and my hard work is worth it if it means I can make a difference for other women, daughters, nieces, and the future of our sport. If you feel how wrong it is to have biological males be competing in female protected divisions in sports, now is the time to speak up and stand your ground.
I took this stand today because I was having anxiety about playing with the openly trans player on tour because of the planned protests for this year and the threats of violence at the event last year. After speaking with a member of the DGPT staff yesterday they made it clear they would be unwilling to change me to an earlier tee time when regarding my fears of safety on the course. They assured me that there would be bag checks, police, and security at the event. Upon arriving this morning there was no security or police presence, I was also allowed entry even though I did not have my credentials. There were zero security precautions.
Today I most likely ended my career and that is okay because this is bigger than me.
The golfer’s protest comes as the Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) has controversially allowed biological male Natalie Ryan to play in the Women’s Pro Open (FPO) division.
Fans and other disc golf players have been critical of Ryan for allegedly earning over $50,000 participating in women’s tournaments, as the player has insisted on competing in FPO tourneys even though a Mixed Pro division exists where anyone can play.
Hellbound and Down 