Trump Administration Ends Standoff With D.C. Public Golf Courses
The National Links Trust and the U.S. Department of the Interior struck a deal.
After months of uncertainty, a resolution has been reached in the heated dispute between U. S. President Donald Trump’s administration and the operators of three historic public golf courses in Washington, D.
C. The National Links Trust (NLT)—the nonprofit organization that has run East Potomac Golf Links, Langston Golf Course, and Rock Creek Park Golf since 2020—and the U. S.
Department of the Interior (DOI) announced a deal late Friday night that brings clarity to the messy situation . NLT has signed a new long-term lease at Langston and Rock Creek, and will keep operating East Potomac in the interim before a planned renovation within the next few years. In January, NLT’s 50-year lease to operate all the courses, which are owned by the National Park Service (which falls under the DOI), was terminated by the Trump administration .
That halted an already underway renovation at Rock Creek. Under the new deal, the Rock Creek project will resume, and East Potomac will undergo a major renovation. Currently, the property offers two 9-hole courses (Par 27 and Par 36), one 18-hole course (Par 72), miniature golf, foot golf, three practice holes, and a driving range.