Trump says East Potomac golf course overhaul starts Sept. 1

Donald Trump said the overhaul of East Potomac Golf Links will begin on Sept. 1 after he toured the century-old Washington course with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and golf architect Tom Fazio. In the same June 28 Truth Social post, Trump also said the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was now in “full use” after vandalism-related repairs, folding a symbolic D.C. asset into the broader push to remake federally linked public space.

East Potomac Golf Links sits on Hains Point in East Potomac Park and is one of Washington’s municipal golf courses. The first 18 holes were built from 1918 to 1923, the miniature golf course opened in 1931, and the site is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The administration says the renovated course will remain open to the public, even as the redesign moves ahead under a plan that has become part of Trump’s wider effort to reshape Washington’s civic landscape.

The National Park Service signed a 50-year lease with National Links Trust in October 2020 to operate East Potomac, Rock Creek Park Golf and Langston Golf Course. National Links Trust says those municipal courses will remain open, accessible and affordable until a historic restoration begins. In May, Burgum publicly released design plans for the East Potomac project, signaling the administration’s interest in turning a public course into a more polished showcase while keeping it under the umbrella of public access.

Trump went further on Sunday, saying the rebuilt course could one day host elite tournaments including the U.S. Open, the Ryder Cup and the PGA Championship. That ambition has sharpened opposition from local critics and the Save East Po campaign, which argues the project could erode affordability and public access and has pressed for more public input. The dispute has also drawn legal scrutiny, with reports of a lawsuit over the course’s future and complaints that the takeover of operations created confusion among golfers.

For Trump, East Potomac has become more than a golf project. It is a federal-adjacent public asset, visible from the National Mall and tied to an administration message about restoration, branding and control over high-profile civic spaces. The course overhaul now carries questions about who benefits, who decides and how far a presidential project can go before a public facility stops feeling public.