National qualifiers begin June 4
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The second annual National Links Trust Championship will be held Oct. 5-6 at the historic Blue Course at East Potomac Golf Links – a 1923 Walter Travis design – in Washington, D.C. Qualifying tournaments begin June 4 and will be held at 10 public-access golf courses, including seven Troon-managed courses, around the country and throughout the summer.
National Links Trust (NLT) is a non-profit organization dedicated to positively impacting communities and changing lives through affordable and accessible municipal golf.
Beginning in the Washington, DC community, NLT has a 50-year lease with the National Park Service to operate and rehabilitate Washington, DC’s three public golf courses – Rock Creek Park Golf, Langston Golf Course, and East Potomac Golf Links.
NLT has partnered with Troon to manage operations and to collaborate on the golf course renovations that will help rejuvenate the three iconic golf courses.
The National Links Trust Championship is open exclusively to public-access golfers age 25 and over. Entries are open to male and female amateur golfers who have a USGA Handicap Index of 8.0 or less for men and 12.0 or less for women, as there will be both men’s and women’s divisions at the Championship.
The Championship will be limited to 78 players and will be contested over 36 holes of individual stroke play, with 18 holes per day. Aligning with NLT’s commitment to accessibility in golf, the Championship’s entry fee will be affordable and stipends will be provided to players traveling to Washington, DC for the event. Anera Sports, an event management firm, will help administrate the Championship.
Qualifying tournaments will be 18-hole individual stroke play, one-day competitions and will be held at the following public-access golf courses:
Qualifying Site City, State Date
Mission del Lago Golf Course San Antonio, Texas Monday, June 4th
Eastmoreland Golf Course Portland, Oregon Monday, June 17th
Alhambra Golf Course* Alhambra, California Monday, June 24th
George Dunne National Golf Course* Chicago, Illinois Wednesday, June 26th
Compass Pointe Golf Course (Northeast)* Pasadena, Maryland Tuesday, July 9th
Highland Park Golf Course* Cleveland, Ohio Monday, July 15th
Papago Golf Course* Phoenix, Arizona Monday, July 22nd
Rock Manor Golf Course* Wilmington, Delaware Tuesday, July 30th
Elma Meadows Golf Course Elma, New York Saturday, August 3rd
Langston Golf Course* Washington, D.C. Saturday, August 10th
“We are exceptionally excited to bring the National Links Trust Championship back to our nation’s capital this fall,” said Championship Chairman and NLT Senior Advisor, Sinclair Eaddy, Jr. “This is an important initiative, an opportunity for public golfers from around the country to compete for a national championship, and we hope to bring together a highly-competitive field diverse in their backgrounds and experiences in the game.”
Last fall, players from California to Massachusetts came to Washington, DC to compete in the inaugural National Links Trust Championship. Both men’s and women’s divisions had players who had competed at the highest levels of mid-amateur golf.
Following their victories, Tyler McKeever (Men’s Division from Atlanta, GA) and Stephanie Tran (Women’s Division from Orange, CA) were invited to play in national invitational tournaments. McKeever will play in the prestigious George L. Coleman Invitation at Seminole Golf Club in April, while Tran has been invited to the Amateur Golf Alliance Women’s Amateur Championship at The Bay Club at Mattapoisett in May.
“To see our winners, who represent some of the very best public golfers in the country, provided these playing opportunities is very special,” Eaddy says. “We are grateful to the tournament committees for extending these invites and we are eager to watch our NLT Championship players compete against the very best of their peers.”
To learn more about the National Links Trust Championship, please visit www.nationallinkstrustchampionship.org
