No. 15: Public Golf Crisis
Dear Pards,
Long-time restaurateur and DC resident. I have two young kids getting into the game entirely because of the initiatives the National Links Trust has done at East Potomac, a few miles from our house. Now that the future is in question with the White House wanting in on the action, how do I keep my kids engaged without breaking the bank? In a city where so much is private clubs and expense accounts, public golf felt like the great equalizer. The NLT built something real there — free clinics, junior programs, a place where my kids could just show up and belong. Now I'm watching trucks dump debris from Trump’s gaudy bathroom reno by the 9th hole and reading about championship renovations and Ryder Cups, and I can't help but wonder if the course my kids fell in love with is about to become something that wasn't built for them. Do I start driving them out to Maryland? Do I just hope for the best? I've seen enough in this city to know that when powerful people discover something good, they ruin it by trying the wrong way to make it better.
-Discouraged in DC
Dear Discouraged,
Though I’ve never been to East Potomac, I’ve seen the impact that the work there has had on affordable golf across the country, and I know how devastating a blow this is for all of us. I can imagine how much more it hits home for you, given its impact on your household.
As you know, the work done by National Links Trust since taking control of the courses in October 2022 has not only been additive to the public golf ecosystem in the DC area, but it’s also provided a template for how accessible golf could look across the entire country.
Unfortunately, what the offices of Don, Faz & D.O.I. want to do at East Potomac is an involuntary vasectomy on public golf in not just the District, but the rest of the nation. For the rare few who refuse to see it that way, I’d encourage you to go read Commander in Cheat by Rick Reilly and report back to me.
Though it sounds like the latest update is better than the status quo a week ago, my friends in the District have little trust that the president is letting up on his gold-plated plans for East Potomac. The Department of the Interior handing NLT a new long-term lease for Langston and Rock Creek while keeping the crown jewel in their pocket reminds me of my grandfather sorting through his used golf balls and pocketing all the Pro V1s for himself. I need to spin too, Grandpa.
I wish I had better news for you. Whatever you do, try not to go down the rabbit hole of putting a simulator in the back of one of your restaurants. The last thing we need is more screens for our kids to be in front of.
P╞r╠℮P.S. All month, the Postage Stamp at the top of the newsletter will be The Cradle, the short course featured on our May postcard sent to our subscribers, by Dave Baysden. If you’d like a digital copy for your TV, you can grab it here.
On the way back down south from Philly last week, my friend Stephen and I stopped at Schoolhouse Nine for a quick lap and leg stretch to split up the eight-hour drive back home. For those of you who don’t know, that is not the name of a 90’s cover band, but rather a 9-hole short course at the feet of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Sperryville, VA, about 80 miles west of DC. The course was designed by Mike McCartin, who is one of the co-founders of National Links Trust. Without ever setting foot on East Potomac, just pulling in the parking lot at S9 gave me a sliver of joy that I believe only community-first golf can provide.
My good friend, Cody, picked up his first win as a pro caddie with Boo Weekley on the Champions Tour this past Sunday. Cody took me under his wing when I started caddying on Tour almost a decade ago, and while I only made it a few years, he hasn’t stopped hoofing bags across every professional tour for over fifteen years now. Most golf fans don’t fully grasp the realities of life as a looper. It’s hard. More often than not, you get more blame than credit and wake up wondering if what you’re doing is worth it to anyone. Sort of like writing a golf newsletter to four people.
Thanks for reading. As always, if you enjoy this type of content, we’d love for you to consider joining the Postage Club.
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I dropped our second edition in the mail last week, and it’s always fun to see subscribers send me pictures of prints and postcards on their kitchen counter. You can have them on yours too, if you subscribe by the end of this week. Use code PARDS for the first month on us. Zero commitment. Cancel the second it feels like spam.
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