Natalie Ryan

Natalie Ryan (born 1993 or 1994) is an American professional disc golfer. She went professional with disc golf in 2019. She saw two Elite Series victories in the sport in 2022. Ryan, a transgender woman, was disqualified from the professional women's division by restrictive gender eligibility guidelines adopted by the main governing body of disc golf in January 2023. After multiple legal battles, Ryan settled with the Professional Disc Golf Association and Disc Golf Pro Tour in December 2023, and she was once again able to compete in the women's division.

Biography Natalie Ryan was born in either 1993 or 1994. She is from the state of Virginia. She was assigned male at birth.

Ryan first played disc golf in 2017 on the second date with her future fiancé. She became a member of the Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) in 2018. She began competing in sanctioned disc golf events in 2019. According to Ryan, around 2019, she was outed as a transgender woman to her fellow disc golfers by a stalker. In 2022, Ryan was sponsored by Neptune Discs. The sponsorship was renewed for five years in 2023.

On December 12, 2022, the PDGA and Disc Golf Pro Tour (DGPT) announced a stricter gender eligibility policy for the Female Professional Open (FPO) division. Previously, the organizations' gender eligibility policies had been similar to the International Olympic Committee's 2015 policy, however the new policy was more similar to the FINA guidelines.

By December 14, Ryan had threatened legal action in regard to her exclusion from the FPO division. In early May, Ryan's lawyer requested a temporary restraining order allowing her to play in the OTB Open. District Judge Troy Nunley granted the order on May 11. The PDGA and DGPT filed an appeal of the order, and their appeal succeeded in the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on May 12. By this time, Ryan had already played in the first round of the OTB Open. In the first round, she had been in fifth place, behind four athletes tied for first.

In June 2023, Ryan was granted a temporary injunction in district court to compete in the FPO division of a disc golf competition in Clearwater, Minnesota. She came in 14th place in this event. By July 25, the DGPT had reversed its decision, reinstating the FPO events under a new United Series designation in the formerly cancelled events. Ryan continued pre-existing litigation against the PDGA and DGPT.

By December 22, 2023, the PDGA and DGPT announced they would be removing the prepubescent medical transition requirement from their gender eligibility policy. The updated policy was to come into effect on January 1, 2024, and was due to a settlement with Ryan.

Following the settlement, Ryan joined the 2024 season tour. Competitors were given extra security in response to the threats. Ryan later confirmed on social media she was one of the competitors targeted by the threats. Ryan finished in 15th place at the event.