President Trump said on Sunday that his administration would renovate one of Washington, D.C.’s public golf courses that sits on a prime stretch of real estate starting in September.
The president for months has considered redeveloping East Potomac Golf Links , a historic public course managed by a nonprofit. He said on social media that the Interior Department would oversee work on the new course.
“It was determined that, on this fantastic site, with water and unparalleled views of D.C.’s Monuments, we will build one of the Greatest Golf Courses anywhere in the World which, importantly, will also be made available to the Public,” he said in a post on Truth Social.
Trump, a golf lover, has complained for months that the course looked rundown. The historic course sits along the Potomac River with views of the Washington Monument from nearly every hole.
The National Links Trust, which manages the course, has moved to make golf more affordable and charges green fees as low as $9. The Trump Organization has more than a dozen luxury golf courses around the world. A golfer teeing off at the organization’s course in Scotland would have to pay about $740.
Trump said the renovated East Potomac Golf Links would be available to the public and would be able to host major golf tournaments like the U.S. Open. He said American golf course architect Tom Fazio would be the architect of the site. The president said he, Fazio and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum toured the course on Sunday.
The golf course project is one of several renovations Trump has ordered in an effort to remake the capital. He has to repair the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool after it was covered in algae following a resurfacing job. He has also moved to redesign the golf course at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.
The National Links Trust didn’t immediately return a request for comment Sunday.
The nonprofit has a 50-year lease to restore and operate Washington’s three public golf courses, including East Potomac. The group was several years into its lease when Trump began considering the East Potomac renovation.
Last year, the Trump administration instructed the National Links Trust to accept mounds of dirt from the White House East Wing demolition or face a finding of default on its lease with the government, The Wall Street Journal reported. The group agreed. Later, the Interior Department issued a default notice on the nonprofit’s lease provision.
The National Links Trust said last month that it had a new long-term lease for its other two golf courses in Washington. The nonprofit said at the time that it would continue operating the East Potomac course “until the National Park Service is ready to commence a historic restoration there.”
Trump regularly golfs at his courses in Florida and Virginia on weekends.
