Tournaments and events
Trump National Golf Club Colts Neck has hosted several state and regional golf events. In 2009, the club hosted the New Jersey State Mid-Amateur Championship, the first New Jersey State Golf Association tournament held at the course since its opening. [4] That same year, it also served as a qualifying site for the U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship. [5] In subsequent years, the club continued to be a venue for competitive golf: it hosted the 2012 New Jersey PGA Senior Professional Championship and the 2014 NJPGA/NJSGA Senior Open Championship, both significant events for area golf professionals and amateurs. [6] In 2017, Colts Neck was selected to host the NJPGA’s Lincoln Charity Clambake, marking the club’s first time hosting a New Jersey Section major championship event. [6]
Controversies and public issues
Heliport approval
In 2011, the club applied to the New Jersey Department of Transportation (DOT) for a license to operate a private helistop on the property. Colts Neck Township’s zoning board initially denied the application, citing local ordinances against helicopter pads and expressing concerns about noise and the impact on the area’s rural character. However, in December 2012, the New Jersey Appellate Division upheld the state DOT’s approval of the helistop. The court’s decision allowed Trump National Colts Neck to operate the helistop under strict conditions: usage was limited to the club’s owner (Donald Trump at the time), his family, or designated guests, for up to 48 daytime flights per year (emergencies excepted). Local officials and some residents had opposed the helipad, and the mayor publicly criticized what he described as Trump’s aggressive approach in pursuing the approval. [7]
Alcohol service and fatal crash
On August 30, 2015, an intoxicated patron who had been served alcohol at the Colts Neck club caused a fatal car accident a few miles from the course, resulting in the death of the patron’s father. The incident led to an investigation by the New Jersey Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC). Authorities determined that the club had overserved the patron and also violated state regulations by serving alcoholic beverages (beyond beer) from mobile carts on the golf course. The ABC brought administrative charges against the club in 2019. Trump National Colts Neck ultimately pleaded no contest to the charges. In a July 2021 settlement, the club agreed to pay a $400,000 penalty and accepted a temporary suspension of its on-course alcohol service (specifically, a ban on alcohol sales from carts through the end of 2021) as conditions of the agreement. [8] The fine was reported to be roughly 6.5% of the club’s 2020 revenue, and state officials noted that the penalty was in line with settlements for similar cases of serving intoxicated patrons. This case was reportedly the first in New Jersey where a golf club faced such sanctions for serving a visibly intoxicated person who later caused a fatal crash.
Water use and environmental compliance
After a regional drought, The Trump Organization sought to increase the club’s permitted water allocation by over 300% in 2011, arguing that more water was necessary to properly irrigate the golf course. This proposal was controversial, coming on the heels of dry conditions where many local homeowners’ wells had run low or dry. Local residents and officials voiced strong opposition to the large increase, fearing it would deplete the area’s groundwater supply. [2] State regulators did approve an expanded water allocation later in 2011, but they attached conditions: the club was required to construct or enlarge several irrigation ponds on the property and implement water-saving measures to ensure that the additional irrigation draw came from captured rainwater and surface runoff rather than the aquifer [2] . Despite these permit conditions, Trump National Colts Neck repeatedly exceeded its water usage limits in subsequent years. For five consecutive years (2011 through 2015), the course used more water than allowed, leading state environmental authorities to issue multiple violation notices warning of substantial fines (in theory up to $50,000 per day per violation) [2] .
The Trump Organization was slow to comply with the required changes, but negotiations with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) eventually led to a settlement. In April 2016, the DEP and the club entered into a consent order resolving the water-use violations. Under this agreement, the club committed to several remediation steps: reducing overall irrigation, planting more drought-tolerant grass species, irrigating fewer acres of turf, upgrading to more efficient sprinkler systems, and purchasing a portion of its water needs (up to 15 million gallons annually) from a public water utility to lessen the draw on local wells. The consent order also imposed an environmental fine. While the DEP could have levied a much larger penalty given the repeated violations, the settlement fine was $147,000 (plus a small amount of interest) — an amount that reflected a negotiated reduction in exchange for the club’s cooperation and compliance efforts. [2]
Even after the 2016 settlement, concerns lingered. In 2017, it was reported that the Colts Neck course had exceeded monthly water limits on several occasions in 2016, suggesting ongoing challenges with compliance. As of the last reporting on the issue, the state had not announced any further enforcement beyond the 2016 consent order. [2]
Farmland assessment tax treatment
Trump National Colts Neck maintains roughly 40 acres of its property as hay fields and wooded areas, which qualify as agricultural use. By doing so, The Trump Organization benefits from a significant tax reduction under the state’s Farmland Assessment program, which is designed to encourage the preservation of agricultural land. In practice, this means the club pays far less in property taxes on those 40 acres than it would if the land were assessed at full residential or commercial value. According to reports, the tax bills for the farmland-designated portions of Trump’s New Jersey golf properties (Colts Neck and the Trump National in Bedminster) have been under $1,000 per year, whereas the land would likely accrue tens of thousands of dollars in taxes annually if taxed at the standard rate (one estimate put the normal tax around $80,000 for that land). While this use of the law is legal and not uncommon among large property owners in New Jersey, it has drawn criticism in the media and from some local residents. They argue that the practice, albeit lawful, undermines the spirit of the farmland preservation intent and deprives the township and county of tax revenue, especially notable given New Jersey’s high property tax rates for other homeowners [9] . Club representatives have noted that maintaining some land in a natural state with agricultural activities (such as growing hay or keeping small livestock like goats) aligns with the law’s requirements and contributes to the rural character of the area, even as the remainder of the property is used as a golf course and private club. [9]
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