Public golf is the lifeblood of the sport. In recent years, public courses have swelled with new golfers, old golfers, and golfers returning to the game.

The National Links Trust (NLT), founded in 2019, has been at the forefront of revitalizing golf in urban areas, namely Washington D.C. They are dedicated to "protecting and promoting accessible, affordable and engaging municipal golf courses to positively impact local communities across the United States of America."

Most notably, NLT has invested in golf course restorations in the Washington D.C. area - East Potomac Golf Links, Langston, and Rock Creek Park.

This week, they announced a new endeavor to energize golfers looking for a competitive challenge. They are launching the National Links Trust Championship, a national championship open exclusively to public-access golfers aged 25 and over and will feature men’s and women’s divisions. This is another step towards providing competitive outlets for golfers who ply their craft on public courses.

Sinclair Eaddy, Jr., Senior Advisor at National Links Trust and member of the United States Golf Association Executive Committee, will chair the championship.

“The creation of this tournament is an important step for NLT and builds on its mission to promote the importance and impact of public and municipal golf,” says Eaddy. “We believe public facility golfers should have the opportunity to play in a national championship competing against their peers. As a leader in the municipal golf space, National Links Trust is honored to present this new and exciting championship.”

East Potomac Golf Links, a 1923 Walter Travis design, will host the event. This host course is no accident; the USGA held the second USGA Public Links at East Potomac GL in 1923.

Eligible golfers will have an opportunity to qualify, and NLT has pledged to have a collection of those qualifiers "at municipal golf courses around the country specifically at historically and architecturally significant facilities in urban areas."

“With this tournament, we want to showcase the full breadth of what golf is and who plays the game,” says NLT co-founder and interim Executive Director, Will Smith. “By hosting qualifiers at these types of facilities, we are looking to provide golfers of diverse backgrounds with the opportunity to compete in a world-class championship. This championship could fill a gap left open in 2014 when the USGA discontinued the Public Links Championship. The Publinx did not have an age restriction and produced some superb winners - D.J. Trahan, Chez Reavie, Ryan Moore, and Brandt Snedecker.

More information about the National Links Trust Championship, including more on eligibility, qualifying sites and dates, and sponsorships, will be released in late February.

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