This is new relatively new ground in professional sports, although many sporting groups, including the International Olympic Committee, the Ladies Golf Union in Britain, the Ladies European Golf Tour and the United States Golf Association do allow transgender athletes to compete.

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"Here golf is still king, " explains spa general manager Jim Root. (Sea Island offers four golf courses on its various properties.) The current chairman of the International Spa Association (ISPA), Root joined Sea Island in 2005 from Tucson's innovative Miraval, and he admits that the move from a progressive spa environment to a conservative one has not been without its challenges.

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