The only balls that pro golfer Mianne Bagger carries around now are stamped Wilson. That’s because Bagger had a sex change ten years ago.

GOLD COAST, Australia – When Mianne Bagger first heard accusations that she had undergone a sex-change operation so she could have an unfair advantage playing women’s golf, she was incredulous.

“That always infuriated me so much, to say ‘what’s to stop some guy from having a sex-change operation to play the women’s tour,”‘ Bagger says. “It really exhibits the level of ignorance that exists.”

Bagger, who was born a male in Copenhagen in 1966, had a sex-change operation in 1995. The Danish-born Australian resident makes her European tour debut Thursday in the ANZ Ladies Masters at Royal Pines.

Last November, she finished tied for ninth in the tour’s qualifying school – securing her 2005 card – just weeks after it changed its “female at birth” policy to allow her to compete.

The Australian tour and Britain’s Ladies Golf Union have also changed their bylaws, and the LPGA Tour in the United States says it is looking further into its policy that would now prevent Bagger from competing.

Regardless, Bagger hopes that at some point in her career, she’ll be better known for her prowess on the golf course than for notoriety about the man she used to be.

“I’d like to be in here talking about my golf,” Bagger said Wednesday in an interview with The Associated Press. “If I go out and play badly, I’ll be treated like anyone else who plays badly – I won’t be in here. I hope it will become old news.”

In the short term, that’s not likely.

While Annika Sorenstam, Michelle Wie and Laura Davies made history by becoming female players to compete on the men’s tour, Bagger became an odd footnote a year ago when she played in the Australian Open in Sydney, missing the cut with rounds of 84 and 74 after becoming the first known transsexual to play in a women’s professional golf tournament.

Now, Bagger hates that tag.

“It’s really kind of offensive, because transsexual doesn’t imply gender,” says Bagger. “It really dehumanizes us. Suddenly I’m no longer female or male.”

Bagger’s early career as a professional hasn’t been lucrative, earning just over $1,200 US. She’s missed the cut in her last two secondary tour events in Australia leading into the Masters.

“I’m working on my swing,” says Bagger. “I don’t want to make excuses, but I’ve just played bad golf the past couple of weeks. I just have to work through a bad patch until I come good. A lot of players go through it.”

The same can’t be said about other players at a personal level.

“People are unaware of the anguish and anxiety that we go through in childhood, and the pain, to reach this decision,” Bagger said of her sex-change operation.

“But we also know that once we make the decision, we face a society of discrimination, of hardships, of abuse, of sometime violent abuse, and in some places of not being able to adopt children. We have difficulty finding relationships, and some are completely disowned by their families and friends.”

Bagger, who began playing golf as an eight-year-old, admitted contemplating contemplated suicide before deciding to become a woman.

“There are so many hurdles you face, and this is an option of life,” she says. “For me it was a life and death thing. I couldn’t go on living the way I was before.”

Once Bagger qualified for the 2005 tour, the tough part began – concern about how she would be accepted by Europe’s leading women players.

“They’ve all been wonderful,” says Bagger. “Now they say ‘let’s get over it, let’s get passed it.’ I’ve been welcomed by all of them.

“At the same time, I don’t want to make them feel uncomfortable or put them in an awkward position. But I hope I’ve broken the barriers down, and now I’m just one of the girls out there playing.”

Germany’s Elisabeth Esterl, a member of the European tour’s player council, admitted that there were some initial concerns.

“There were a lot of questions about Mianne’s situation, and some suggestions, yes, that perhaps anyone could have a sex-change operation and join our tour,” Esterl said during Wednesday’s pro-am.

“But once we received her information, and read up on the case, we realized that it was a compelling issue. We realized that as a tour, we could lead the way in saying that Mianne’s situation was something we needed to accept and we changed our rules accordingly.

“She has been great. She is very welcome by all the players.”

Bagger isn’t sure yet how the galleries will accept her.

“I haven’t been anywhere yet where that’s been an issue,” said Bagger. “I guess that’s something that I’ve got to experience, something that the future holds.”

Bagger says she’s also uncertain about a future with a man in her life.

“I don’t have a boyfriend at the moment,” says Bagger. “I meet guys from time to time.

“I find attitudes different in different parts of the world. I find where I’m living in Adelaide (Australia) there are some very narrow-minded attitudes.

“You go elsewhere, it’s not a big issue. Europe does not seem to be such a problem.

“But because I’ve been so open about my life, it has been a problem. That’s just the way it is.”