Cannabis and golf in California: the tournaments, the courses and the rules

Cannabis and golf have found each other, just not the way the old stoner comedies imagined. In California the meeting point is the industry tournament: a scramble full of growers, brand reps and dispensary buyers, with sponsor tents on the tee boxes and a lot of business done between shots. What you will not find is a legal place to light up on the fairway.

Here is what these events actually look like, using three real organizers, and the three rules that decide what you can do on a golf day: public places, private property and the clubhouse bar.

Last reviewed: November 2026.

Cannabis and golf: what a cannabis golf tournament looks like

One organizer, The Classic, bills itself as a cannabis industry executive golf and networking tour. Its 2027 schedule runs through six of the largest legal markets, with the Cali Classic listed for March 2027 at Monarch Beach in Southern California. The format is a scramble, which the organizer pitches as “competitive enough to matter, relaxed enough for every handicap,” with music, food and brand displays on the course. You can play 18 holes or come only for the networking, and the organizer says 140 brands have played its events.

Smaller events run on the same idea. The California Buyers Club held its first annual tournament on August 14, 2024 at Strawberry Farms Golf Club in Irvine, pitched as a way for cannabis buyers and brands to meet in a light-hearted setting. A foursome cost $2,500 and came with a table at the cocktail hour, and the club put up $20,000 for any hole-in-one. The Canna Golf Charity Tournament page still shows its spring 2023 event: 18 holes, brunch and awards, 21 and over with ID, and proceeds to charity.

Read those pages for what they are. They are industry and charity events built around golf and business. None of them says it is a licensed cannabis consumption event, and organizer dates and venues change, so check the current listing before you plan around one.

Can you smoke weed on a golf course?

No, not on a public course. On a private course the owner can ban it, and an owner’s yes does not override state law: no use in places open to the public and no smoking where tobacco smoking is banned. The DCC says cannabis cannot be used in public places or smoked anywhere tobacco smoking is banned, and that property owners can prohibit it on their land. Switching to an edible does not get around a rule against cannabis use.

City courses add their own rules. San Diego’s Parks and Recreation rules of conduct prohibit marijuana use and tell visitors to follow the posted golf course rules too. Other cities write their own, but expect the same answer at any municipal course.

For an event like a golf day, a licensed temporary cannabis event is the way on-site sales and consumption can happen, and the bar is high. According to the DCC, only a licensed cannabis event organizer can host one, with a separate temporary event license applied for at least 60 days ahead, at a location approved by the city or county. An event with no cannabis sales or consumption, like an industry golf scramble, needs no DCC license at all.

The 19th hole is off limits

Most golf days end at the bar, and that is where people get caught out. California’s Alcoholic Beverage Control says cannabis consumption is not permitted on premises with an alcohol license, and it specifically includes club licenses and places with restricted entry. A members-only clubhouse is no exception, and neither is the patio of a licensed restaurant.

So if a tournament has a cocktail hour, that part of the day is alcohol only. Any cannabis activity at a golf event would need its own licensed space, separate from the bar.

Golf course with a dispensary, or a cannabis country club?

Both searches come up a lot. We have not found a California golf course with a dispensary operating on site, and “cannabis country club” is usually a marketing name for an event or membership idea rather than a course where you can consume. If you see one advertised, ask which DCC license covers it.

For buying, a licensed dispensary is still the way to go. Your local Vibe store has the current menu, and a budtender can help with anything on it. Prices vary by location and change daily.

Golf, THC and the drive home

Golf looks gentle, but it involves swinging clubs near other people and driving carts on slopes. The CDC says recent cannabis use can affect attention, coordination, decision-making and reaction time. Do not play near others or drive a cart while impaired, and never drive home after using cannabis; the DCC responsible-use page explains the risks. Effects vary from person to person, so read the label and start low with anything new.

Competitive golfers have another layer: events under anti-doping rules ban THC in competition, the same way they do in tennis and boxing. Ask the body running your event for its current rules.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• The Classic Events: 2027 national tour
• The California Buyers Club: first annual golf tournament
• Canna Golf Charity Tournament
• DCC: what is legal
• City of San Diego Parks and Recreation rules of conduct
• DCC: cannabis events
• California ABC: cannabis and alcoholic beverages
• CDC: cannabis and brain health
• DCC: responsible use

For adults 21+ (18+ with a physician’s recommendation in California). Keep out of reach of children and pets. Do not drive or operate machinery after use.