This isn’t the first time a woman has taken on the challenge of competing in a men’s tournament, but it’s always a story that inspires. In 2004, Ria Quizon and Heidi Chua became the first woman to play in the Philippines Open, though both missed the cut by a wide margin.  

Golf has a rich history of trailblazing women competing in men’s events. Babe Didrikson Zaharias, an LPGA Hall of Famer, broke barriers in the 1940s, competing in seven PGA Tour events and making the cut twice in 1945.

Michelle Wie famously made the cut at the SK Telecom Open in 2006, becoming the only woman to do so on the Asian Tour. Lexi Thompson’s recent appearance at the 2023 Shriners Children’s Open saw her narrowly miss the cut by two strokes, but her performance captivated fans worldwide.

Mixed-gender competitions have become increasingly popular in recent years, reflecting a growing desire for inclusivity in the sport. The PGA Tour’s Grant Thornton Invitational and the Scandinavian Mixed, co-hosted by Annika Sörenstam and Henrik Stenson, highlight how these events create new opportunities.

Sörenstam herself made history in 2003, becoming the first woman since Zaharias to compete in a PGA Tour event at the Bank of America Colonial.