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LA golfers complain of black market for tee times
Los Angeles golfers say it's "impossible" to reserve a tee time for public courses through the city's online portal, saying bots are reserving all the tee times and brokers are selling the reservations for profit.
LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles City Council Wednesday approved a motion that seeks to crack down on the illegal booking and reselling of tee times for profit.
Council members voted 14-0 to instruct the Department of Recreation and Parks to detail the operation and management of its reservation system for city public golf courses, and any efforts made to stop the illegal activity. The report is expected to include potential fee adjustments to cover costs for upgrading the booking system.
Council members Katy Yaroslavsky and Nithya Raman filed the motion in April, seconded by Imelda Padilla and Bob Blumenfield.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: LA golfers frustrated by tee time 'black market'
The Department of Recreation and Parks operates multiple golf courses throughout the city. Residents can purchase an L.A. City Golf Player Card and book tee times up to nine days in advance at all golf courses. Without a player card, the general public can book tee times up to seven days in advance.
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LA city cracking down on black market tee time brokers
An update on the Free the Tee movement, LA City officials approved a plan to discourage black market brokers who resell tee times for profit at LA City courses. Golfer Dave Fink, the man behind the movement, talks about this big update.
Brokering or advertising tee times for resale or using third-party programs for booking tee times are strictly prohibited, according to city policy.
In March, a group of golfers filed a class-action lawsuit alleging the city failed to perform its duties to oversee courses. The suit claims the city has permitted unscrupulous brokers to profit off city courses — and as a result, people who have purchased a player card have not received the benefits of affordable tee times as promised by the city.
The suit claimed the Department of Recreation and Parks was notified of the illegal activity as early as October 2023.
In response to illegal activity being reported by residents, the department announced that bookings at city courses will require a non-refundable $10 deposit per person, with the amount applied toward greens fees upon check-in.
The city also updated its policy on its golf-reservation website, warning about the use of automated programs to book tee times.