Golf Australia has cleared the way for trans players to select their own gender handicap and use matching change rooms from Aug. 20.
The change will mean that players can choose to compete under a male or female handicap, without needing to have undergone any medical testing.
A women’s advocacy group has criticised the decision, saying Golf Australia has prioritised diversity and inclusion over fairness for women and girls.
“Like most sports, biological sex creates notable differences in athletic performance,” Stephanie Bastiaan, head of advocacy at Women’s Forum Australia, told The Epoch Times.
“Men and women differ on average in physical characteristics that matter in golf, including strength, clubhead speed, and driving distance.
“The sport’s separate tees, course ratings, and handicapping arrangements reflect those realities.”
Bastiaan said it was unfair for girls who would learn the game then aspire to the top.
“You cannot say fairness matters once a woman or girl reaches the top while destroying the female category on the pathway that is supposed to get her there,” she said.
“And for the vast majority of female golfers, amateur and club competition is their competitive sporting life.
“They may never play professionally, but that does not make the integrity of their competitions any less important.”
The policy also supports the use of whichever bathroom or change room fits someone’s gender identity.
“Golf Australia recognises the existing difficulties faced in having adequate access to facilities including change room and shower facilities for people involved in golf that are trans and gender diverse, but is committed to a facilities improvement process to enhance trans and gender diverse inclusion and participation,” the organisation’s guidelines note.
The organisation also suggests affiliated organisations consider changing signage to be gender neutral and carrying out modifications to existing bathroom, shower, and changing spaces with room dividers and shower curtains to help with privacy.
Bastiaan said this was deeply concerning.
“Women and girls should be able to change and use bathroom facilities without being required to share intimate spaces with members of the opposite sex,” she said.
“That is a reasonable expectation of privacy and dignity, particularly in community sporting clubs where adults and juniors may use the same facilities.
“Inclusion should not require removing protections that exist for women and girls. Clubs can accommodate people who want gender-neutral facilities without taking away single-sex spaces from everyone else.”
Damien de Bohun, a general manager at Golf Australia, said the changes reflect a broader alignment with global “best practice” on gender inclusion.
“Everyone deserves to feel welcome, safe, and like they belong in our game, regardless of their gender identity,” he said in a statement.
“The world’s leading golf organisations updated their gender policies in late 2024 and early 2025. We have followed the same considered path, working with leading sport integrity experts to develop a policy that balances inclusion with competitive fairness.”
Golf Australia says a player may only select one handicap category every four years, in order to prevent category changes from being used for competitive advantage.
Casual and social golf, and junior competitions, remain unaffected by the change.
