Transgender Disc Golfer Removed From Women's Tournament In California Proceeds To Win Women's Event In Virginia

Published|Updated

Transgender disc golfer Natalie Ryan was recently banned from competing in the women's division on a California tour. This didn't stop them from taking their talents to Virginia and winning a women's event, however.

Ryan, a biological male, won the Lake Marshall Open by defeating five other women and earned a $356 paycheck in the process. The winning score posted by Ryan was 197 over three rounds, while second-place finished 24 shots behind.

While Ryan is eligible to compete in Virginia, that isn't the case in California.

Ryan, who had climbed all the way to the No. 5 world ranking in the women’s division, filed a discrimination lawsuit in February about a December 2022 rule change that effectively banned transgender players to compete in the women's division.

Earlier this month Ryan was deemed eligible to compete after a US District Judge issued a restraining order.

Ryan competed in the opening round of the OTB Open, but the tour itself filed an appeal after the fact and the trans player was immediately removed from the tour and banned from competing.

“This order restores the DGPT’s ability to enforce its current policy on Gender Eligibility. The DGPT will follow the court’s ruling and enforce its Gender Eligibility Policy which will disallow Ms. Ryan from continuing competition in the OTB Open,” the tour said in a statement.

This weekend's win in Virginia was Ryan's fourth so far this year.

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.