WSOP Ladies Final Sparks Debate - Transgender Player Finishes 2nd

"Williams, a transgender woman, entered today's Day 3 tied with the chip lead. And while her table mates greeted her with friendly smiles and open arms, her deep run created a stir in some anti-transgender social media circles.

But Williams was unfazed, telling PokerNews on break that she doesn't monitor social media and that no one that she's played with has had an issue with her. And when asked why she played in the Ladies Championship, her answer was simple.

"I'm a woman, so I play in the women's event," Williams told PokerNews. "It's not like making a statement or anything. I'm just playing a tournament.""

Aubrey Williams Brushes Off Hate Amid WSOP Ladies Championship Final Table Run (https://www.pokernews.com/news/2026/06/poker-player-brushes-off-hate-in-ladies-championship-51696.htm)

Aubrey Williams has no time for internet hate as she chases her first bracelet.

www.pokernews.com

What's the deal here? Does being male-bodied confer an edge in poker? Or was it somehow causing discomfort for female-bodied players?

So what’s going on here? Does being biologically male confer any advantage in poker? Or did her presence somehow make biologically female players uneasy?

The article didn’t respond to your first point, and concerning the second it said that other players were comfortable playing with her.

What bothers me is that the article (as well as everything I saw on Facebook about this last night) didn't cite a single person who was upset about her performing. Not one name was mentioned in anything I read.

Those assholes should be publicly exposed for their conduct.

My take is: name them and shame them — pathetic people.

And nicely put, Ashley — "I'm just playing a tourney." Damn right.

Fk the haters.

I look forward to watching the final table. This crazy hand was courageous for both players. Skye really had to earn this one.

Jami Lafay (@LafayJami) on X (https://x.com/LafayJami/status/2071651378620219819/video/1?s=46)

Hand of the year from the @WSOP

x.com

Isn't the women's event open to anyone, but with a reduced buy-in for female players?

Isn't the ladies event open to everyone, but women receive a reduced buy-in?

Correct. A public accommodation that discriminates on the basis of sex would violate the Civil Rights Act. Personally I believe charging a higher entry fee for non-women would also constitute as sex-based discrimination. Of course, it would likely cost someone far more than $9,000 to challenge that in court, so it's unlikely to happen. 🙂

But that doesn't really affect this post because Aubrey Williams is a woman, so she would simply pay the $1,000 entry fee anyway. More importantly, why would someone want to enter an event that wasn't intended to include them in the first place?

This is the type of hot button topic that I tend to avoid as some people take things too seriously or worse than people just don't care about your opinion if you don't agree if theirs and just bash your back for not following their belief.

My theory of life is to let people live the way they want to if they're not hurting others or me could who cares. I have known a few people who have made these type of changes from boy to girl and girl to boy. I don't have to understand it I don't have to like it well what is it doing to me? Not a blanking thing. When I was a young kid a young adult people had big issues about homosexuality the comments that were made about those people were rude and people abused them left and right including a friend of mine who turned out to be gay. He would end up moving away from there because of the way people reacted when they did come out? The thing is how many times have you spent over at a friend's House of the same sex I just had a good time hanging out at night guess what if they're having sex who's gonna know unless you tell him? It doesn't matter.

After all this what am I trying to get to I don't agree with the change from one sex to another but if you're chewing it I don't care it's not me. Do I think it's fair to have boys who change over to girls suddenly being women's sports? I think this is the one big issue we could have and I would agree with because even after these changes there are muscular differences that allow the boys to girls change to have a physical advantage. In this aspect I kind of agree with people who say we shouldn't have the intermixed in the sports.

Now As for the poker experience. In this case what advantage does this person have over the other women? I can't think of any to be honest. What do the other women think overall I think that would be more important. One of the top players in the world is a female poker player. Should we only have male tournaments would that be wrong? Now frankly I know men outplay women what is it 95% to 5% play of the female variety so we don't really need mail events. I think any male who joins one of these tournaments is being a jerk about it but this isn't a person who is a typical male being a jerk trying to play in a female's event it's somebody who's made a change and is living a life as a female. I think it's up to the women of the world to make the decision of if this is good or bad not groups who have religious beliefs or transphobic beliefs but if a vast majority of the female players are OK with this and feel that this person is a female like them who cares if they're playing I don't.

Biological men shouldn’t be permitted in women’s sports because they have unfair physiological advantages. That’s the reason for separate men’s and women’s divisions. Poker, by contrast, isn’t a physical contest, so there’s no men-only division. There shouldn’t be a women-only division either. Everyone ought to be able to play poker together and have a great time. 🙂

Biological men ought not be permitted to compete in women's sports due to their unfair physiological advantages.

You're correct. 🙄

Biological men should not be allowed in women's sports because of unfair physiological advantages. That's why there are separate men & women categories. In poker, however, its not a physical competition. That's why there are no men only category. There should not be any women only category either. Anyone should be able to play poker together & have a heck of a time. 🙂

Ladies events are very much so about the vibes. This is pretty clear from the wsop (https://www.casino.us/poker/tournaments/wsop/) coverage and what competitors say.

The WSOP has poor boundaries but at least there's one space that isnt infested with slimeballs that ruin the game for everyone.

You're right. 🙄

Is that last photo you Zorba ?

You're right. 🙄

Oh my, I would date all four before that "sexy" guy...

Ont. Fck all transfobic and homophobic persons (a@@holes)...

You're right. 🙄

Fantastic cherrypicking.

Males on average are stronger and faster than females.

Yes, Men Run Faster Than Women, but Over Shorter Distances and Not by Much - Neuroscience News (https://neurosciencenews.com/male-female-running-speed-21531/)

The between-sex performance gap when it comes to running is much narrower at shorter sprint distances, a new study reveals.

neurosciencenews.com

However, females are WAAAAY better than males at ultra endurance and even sports competitions are likely underselling because very few would want to compete in a competition of carrying 30 lbs 2000km.

https://www.dlapiper.com/en-ca/insights/publications/2025/05/ultra-endurance-and-gender-performance

From an evolutionary standpoint this makes sense, one male can fertilize 10 females but not vice versa so in the long run it makes more sense for females than males to be adapted for endurance and survival.

I also think this is why most established sports orgs have favored short term sports because it favors men on average. I don't think its a coincidence that the Olympics has no ultra long distance events despite running for a long time being a thing for thousands of years and was humans competitive advantage against most other animals.

It would be much, much worse if it were a "funny guy" paying $10k just for amusement.

Fortunately this is happening far less often, because people are realizing that ladies tournaments exist to honor women in poker and to encourage more women to join a game long dominated by men.

Is that final photo of you, Zorba?

I wish I resembled that fine example of an athlete. 😉

👍

Fantastic cherry picking.

I thought so too. 👍

🙂

Oh wow, I'd go out with all four before that so‑called "sexy" guy...

I'd do the same. 😀

👍

Anyone should be able to play poker together & have a heck of a time. 🙂

They can. They can in every single WSOP Event except for ONE. And that one is for a reason. If you watched or listened to any of the event you'd understand just what the reasons are.

I wish I looked like that fine specimen of an athlete. 😉

👍

Nick and I, this is how we roll:

(https://www.casino.us/cardschat/attachments/1782948385077-png.411767/)

Hope he paid the 10k to get in. Anything else would be crazy.

Personally, I believe everyone should be free to identify however they wish, and no one should face mistreatment because of that.

That said, I continue to hold that biological sex is determined by what you're born as. So if you are born a man, I consider you biologically still a man, even if you identify as a woman. You can absolutely identify as a woman if that reflects who you are, but to me that does not alter your biological sex.

I recognize not everyone shares this view, and that's okay. People are entitled to their own opinions.

Because of this, I also feel that if a discount or event is explicitly intended for biological women, then someone born male should pay the standard price, even if they identify as a woman. To me, those situations ought to be decided by biological sex rather than gender identity.

They can. They can in every single WSOP Event except for ONE. And that one is for a reason. If you watched or listened to any of the event you'd understand just what the reasons are.

Not quite true .... there are at least two events limited by age to seniors as well .

Not quite true .... there are at least two events limited by age to seniors as well .

Not 'at least two'... there's two. If you're going to nitpick something stupid at least be accurate.

As long as someone is playing within the rules set by the organizers, I don't have a problem with it. I'd rather focus on the poker than on someone's personal identity. At the end of the day, we're all there to compete and enjoy the game.