Accessibility links Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player Open Navigation Menu --> Newsletters NPR Shop Close Navigation Menu Home News Expand/collapse submenu for News National World Politics Business Health Science Climate Race Culture Expand/collapse submenu for Culture Books Movies Television Pop Culture Food Art & Design Performing Arts Life Kit Gaming Music Expand/collapse submenu for Music Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions The Best Music of 2025 Podcasts & Shows Expand/collapse submenu for Podcasts & Shows Daily Morning Edition Weekend Edition Saturday Weekend Edition Sunday All Things Considered Up First Here & Now NPR Politics Podcast Featured Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Planet Money Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions The Best Music of 2025 About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics Trump administration threatens to take over 3 public golf courses in D.C. Three public golf courses in Washington, D.C., face an uncertain future as the Trump administration fights to take control of the historic courses from the National Links Trust. National Trump administration threatens to take over 3 public golf courses in D.C. April 13, 20264:44 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition From By Matthew Blitz Trump administration threatens to take over 3 public golf courses in DC Listen · 3:44 3:44 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5759661/nx-s1-9727405" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript Three public golf courses in Washington, D.C., face an uncertain future as the Trump administration fights to take control of the historic courses from the National Links Trust. Sponsor Message
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The Trump administration is threatening to take over and make over public golf courses in the nation's capital. Matt Blitz of member station WAMU hit the links to find out more.
MATT BLITZ, BYLINE: It's a busy Easter weekend at Langston Golf Course in northeast Washington, D.C. Golfers mill around the non-frills clubhouse, organizing the clubs, eating breakfast and chatting with friends as they prepare to play the historic 18-hole course.
RANDALL THOMPSON: Driving range is full, we've got kids out with parents, traditional golfers who are playing. So it's just - it's a communal space.
BLITZ: That's general manager Randall Thompson, talking with me in between helping a threesome start a golf cart and saying hi to regulars. Langston first opened in 1939 as one of the only courses in the country available to Black golfers. It was small and built on an abandoned city dump but belonged to the community. Thompson said Lee Elder, the first Black golfer to play the Masters tournament, grew up on these greens and later became the course's manager.
THOMPSON: There's a great deal of pride that comes with the history of Langston, but also what came of that history, what today looks like, what the future could look like.
BLITZ: Today, Langston is one of the district's three public golf courses. The others are in East Potomac Park and Rock Creek Park. A round of 18 can cost less than $40, cheaper than most private courses. But that's being threatened. In December, the Interior Department terminated the lease held by the local nonprofit National Links Trust. President Trump is signaling he wants to redevelop the courses to become championship level. This worries cofounder Mike McCartin of the trust. We talk at the nearly century-old East Potomac Park golf course, overlooking golfers taking their shots and pops of pink from D.C.'s famed cherry blossom trees.
MIKE MCCARTIN: I have to imagine that the next step is to shut down the course and to renovate it into whatever that future form is. Knowing the history of this place and knowing what it means to the community, that's a hard place to be.
BLITZ: The administration has already started making its mark. For the last six months, trucks have been dumping dirt from the controversial White House East Wing renovations. The pile is now so tall that it blocks iconic views of the Washington Monument.
MCCARTIN: You know that it means something about the future of this place. And it's all big question mark. And so I think you can really feel that uncertainty when you're out here and looking at the pile.
BLITZ: Local golfers have taken notice. D.C. area native Alex Dickson is one of three plaintiffs suing the Trump administration over their plans. He says, beyond turning these courses into something that's no longer for everyone, he worries about the precedent.
ALEX DICKSON: Do these golf courses then become part of this kind of political football?
BLITZ: In a statement to NPR, the Interior Department said in part that President Trump is committed to keeping the course accessible, and affordability remains a priority. Back at Langston, I meet Brent Howard (ph), who came to this course as a kid with his brother and dad. Langston was the only golf course his dad, who is Black, could play when he first moved here from the South in the 1950s. But his father recently suffered a stroke, so Howard is missing his regular partner. And he's hoping the course doesn't close before his dad can make it back out.
BRENT HOWARD: It would definitely tug on my sleeve a little bit and mark the end of a time that, you know, I wish would never end.
BLITZ: The courses remain in limbo as the court case plays out and the Trump administration decides what they want to do next. For now, Langston and East Potomac Park remain open, but it's not known for how long.
(SOUNDBITE OF GOLF BALL THUDDING)
BLITZ: For NPR News, I'm Matt Blitz in Washington.
(SOUNDBITE OF QUINCY JONES' "SUMMER IN THE CITY") Copyright © 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor MessageBecome an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{1167:function(e,n,c){e.exports=c(323)},323:function(e,n,c){"use strict";c.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([c.e(1),c.e(2),c.e(3),c.e(4),c.e(82)]).then(function(e){c(3),c(1140),c(116),c(94),c(52),c(493),c(239),c(102),c(104),c(1141),c(143),c(1142),c(238),c(48),c(1143)}.bind(null,c)).catch(c.oe)}},[[1167,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();