On September 27, 2026, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) of California signed Assembly Bill 1954, known as the Protecting Access to Reservations Act, or PAR Act. The law prohibits third parties from advertising, selling, or transferring tee-time reservations at publicly owned golf courses without the written consent of the course operator. It responds to a controversy that erupted around Los Angeles municipal golf courses in March 2024, when golfers and influencer Dave Fink publicized a network of brokers snapping up scarce reservations and offering them for a fee. The Los Angeles Times reported that brokers advertised tee times on social media and charged as much as $40 in booking fees.
The underlying frustration was familiar to many public-course golfers: prime weekend slots seemed to disappear quickly, while some were later available through brokers willing to sell access for profit. The practice put ordinary players in competition with intermediaries for publicly owned resources.
PAR gives course operators control over whether and how third-party resale can happen. It also leaves room for golfers to transfer reservations at cost under specified circumstances, including when the operator has not posted a cancellation policy on the booking website.
That operator-first principle is already central to Golf District’s resale marketplace, according to the company—a modern demand platform for selling tee times—golfers can re-list tee times only within rules established by each participating course, allowing operators to govern the process rather than cede it to unauthorized brokers. The company, powered by Price Point, says the platform is free for courses and can help turn cancellations, no-shows, and short-shows into inventory that can be resold.
Golf District’s Price Point feature extends that approach to sold-out tee times. Golfers submit offers for times within a desired window, and the course receives the first opportunity to accept before an offer reaches the open market. Golf District says a golfer’s card is charged only if the course accepts; otherwise, held funds are automatically released.
The distinction matters. Resale can serve players and courses when it follows operator-set terms, while unapproved brokering can divert access and value away from both. A course-controlled marketplace gives operators a say over which reservations return to circulation, the conditions attached, and who gets the first chance to claim them.
California’s new law makes written operator consent the legal threshold for third-party resale at public courses. Golf District offers one example of how that model may work in practice: resale that starts with the course’s rules and keeps the operator involved when demand exceeds supply. More information is available at Golf District and its Price Point page.
