The Trump administration has taken its most consequential step yet in a growing dispute over Washington, D.C.’s municipal golf courses, revoking the lease of the nonprofit National Links Trust (NLT) and opening the door for federal control of the city’s public tracks.
On Wednesday, the Department of the Interior terminated NLT’s agreement to operate Rock Creek, East Potomac and Langston Hughes golf courses. The decision follows President Donald Trump publicly floating the idea of federal — and potentially personal — involvement in the courses’ future, saying he would make them “really beautifully.”
NLT, which won a 50-year lease in 2020, has overseen a widely praised revival of D.C.’s muni scene. The organization reports more than doubling rounds and revenue, investing over $8.5 million in capital improvements, and keeping green fees among the most affordable in the region — typically under $50 for 18 holes. It also secured pro bono design work from architects such as Gil Hanse, Tom Doak and Beau Welling, with a major renovation of Rock Creek recently underway.
Interior officials cited $8.8 million in unpaid rent as justification for ending the lease, a claim NLT strongly disputes. Under the lease terms, rent could be offset by capital improvements, which NLT says were approved by the National Park Service in amounts matching the government’s calculations.
While the administration has not explicitly detailed its long-term plans, Trump’s personal interest in golf — and in reshaping Washington’s physical landscape — looms large. The president owns more than a dozen courses worldwide and has recently focused on high-profile projects in the capital, fueling speculation that D.C.’s munis represent another opportunity to leave his mark.
For now, NLT will continue operating the courses during the transition back to federal control, but all work on the Rock Creek renovation has been halted. Longer term, local golfers worry about affordability. Trump-operated public-access courses typically charge well over $100 per round, though the president has suggested local rates would remain lower in D.C.
NLT leaders fear their vision — accessible, community-focused public golf — may not survive. “When you design for a $250 green fee, even if locals pay less, the course still caters to the $250 golfer,” NLT founder Will Smith said recently.
The move comes amid Trump’s broader re-engagement with the golf world, including hosting talks between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour and welcoming the Tour back to Trump National Doral in 2026 — a symbolic return after the event left the course during his first presidential run.