Washington, DC is home to three main public golf courses: East Potomac, Langston Hughes and Rock Creek.

In early 2026, Trump terminated the lease with the National Links Trust. The National Links Trust is a non-profit that manages the courses starting in 2020. They aimed to preserve the affordability and historicalness of the courses, but now they are back under federal control. 

These courses’ primary appeal are their modest pricing and scenic locations. Golfers among every skill level can play at a cheap price, and also witness the beauty of the DC monuments as they play a round of golf.

With Trump taking them over, there are talks of building a new course. This would most likely give the course a major upgrade due to the fact the president has talked about bringing a “world-class championship caliber” course to DC. As a result of the status of the course, prices would be driven up, making these once easily accessible courses now impossible for people on a budget to play.

“It’s close [relative to us] and it’s cheap; that’s what makes it so easy to play here,” junior Roman Sandoli said.

Why? Many golfers find this to be rather out of the blue. A statement from the administration reveals that the goal is to redevelop the “decrepit sites into world-class destinations to restore the nation’s capital with glamour and prestige.”

People are taking action though. DC golfers Alex Dickson and Dave Roberts are suing over a variety of legal issues. As a result of the Trump administration ending the lease, they claimed it violated numerous acts and federal laws, including the National Environmental Policy Act, the National Historic Preservation Act, the Administrative Procedure Act and the 1897 Congressional Act Violation.

While what Trump is doing has potentially violated numerous laws, he is the president. The trials are beginning to ramp up. While nothing has physically been changed to the courses yet, the future of DC golf is unknown for now.