Pool Player Lynne Pinches Sues Ultimate Pool Over Event Ban

Lynne Pinches, a 53-year-old pool player from Norwich with 35 years of experience, has filed a lawsuit against Ultimate Pool for discrimination and victimisation. GB News reported that she also launched a crowdfunder to support the legal action. Pinches reached the final of a national tournament in 2023 but forfeited rather than compete against a trans-identifying male opponent.

She stated after the match, “I don’t care about the money or the title or the trophy. ” In 2024 she turned down her first professional playing contract in protest over the governing body’s policies. Pinches faced verbal abuse and had a bottle thrown at her by individuals connected to trans-identifying male competitors, GB News reported.

Police advised her to wear a bodycam at future events. In April 2025 she wore one at an Ultimate Pool match; a trans activist reported it to security, and she was removed from the venue. Ultimate Pool then banned her from all future events as both competitor and spectator.

Pinches’ two sons compete in Ultimate Pool tournaments. She regularly attended to watch them before the ban. After the UK Supreme Court ruled that women and men are defined by biological sex for equalities law, the pool governing body changed its rules to bar trans-identifying males from the female category.

Pinches stated she is taking legal action “so that no one else is put through this in the future, because if they can do it to me after a lifetime of playing, they can absolutely do it to anyone”. Ultimate Pool denies that the ban is connected to her gender-critical stance and intends to contest the claim.