Fifty years should mean something. The National Links Trust signed a 50-year lease to keep Washington’s municipal golf courses affordable and accessible. But the Trump administration terminated that agreement after just a few years on 31st December 2025. Three courses closed overnight, and the golf circle has been pretty vocal about the development.

Pro golfer Richie Ramsay didn’t mince words on X. “Sad news, golf needs good public courses, not a land grab,” he wrote, resharing the National Links Trust’s announcement. His comment captured what many feared: that this wasn’t about golf management at all.

Notably, he wasn’t alone in calling out that decision.

Matt Ginella, a respected golf storyteller, was equally blunt. “Disgusting and indefensible,” he posted in response to the termination news. These aren’t random hot takes. They reflect a genuine concern about what happens when affordable access to the sport gets steamrolled by bureaucratic decisions.

So what actually happened here?

The Interior Department terminated the National Links Trust’s lease to manage three courses under the National Park Service: The three courses in question are Langston Golf Course, East Potomac Golf Links, and Rock Creek Golf Course. The administration claimed it was about getting things done for the American people and working with partners who share that goal.

The decision means more for East Potomac Golf Links. The 36-hole course is very close to the White House and Capitol Hill, which is magnificent real estate by any standard. Walter Travis built the Blue Course in 1918, and golfers have used it ever since. Two weeks before the final call, the government sent the Trust a legal notice, letting them know about what was coming.

But the National Links Trust saw it differently.

The nonprofit, which has managed these courses to keep them accessible and affordable, called the decision devastating. They’d invested $8.5 million in renovations to upgrade the facilities. “We are fundamentally in disagreement with the administration’s characterization of NLT as being in default under the lease,” they stated. They weren’t just managing golf courses; they were running a mission.

Since it started in 2019, the group has made it a priority to keep DC’s public golf courses open to everyone, regardless of their income. And now that mission seems to be going nowhere. The timing is even worse: work on the Rock Creek Park renovation project has stopped completely, and contractors are already packing up. “This development is extremely disappointing for all who have supported the project,” the Trust said in their statement.

However, the group isn’t ready to give up yet. They are still “stubbornly hopeful” that there is a way to preserve affordable public golf in DC. They want to talk to the administration and use their experience and community connections to establish common ground. But right now, those courses are empty.

The backlash wasn’t limited to social media. Industry leaders with decades of experience managing public courses aren’t happy either and they made their feelings known.

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Voices from the golf industry push back

Michael McCartin, who helped start the National Links Trust, made the stakes obvious. “Our mission is to provide affordable and accessible golf, and our obligation is to our employees and the community.” He wasn’t only talking about fairways and greens. He said that these are locations where people gather, and leaving them closed means leaving behind the people who depend on them.

Jay Karen from the National Golf Course Owners Association gave important information regarding what makes municipal courses different. He told the Washington Post, “The DNA of municipal courses is a bit different than those owned and operated privately and much different than country clubs.” Municipal courses aren’t only about playing golf; they’re also about getting to play.

That access is important. Munis protects green land forever while making golf courses accessible to as many people as possible. They’re where beginners learn, where pensioners enjoy their afternoons, and where families may play a round together. Country clubs are for their members. Private courses are for people who can pay a lot of money. Everyone else can take public courses.

The termination not only ended a lease, but it also cut off that access point completely. Washington’s golfers have nowhere to go that won’t cost them a lot of money if they don’t have another plan. That’s why voices like Ramsay and Ginella, as well as industry experts, are calling this decision unjustifiable.