Oak Ridge — Grass up to your waist and logs laying across fairways greet disc golf players in Oak Ridge.
A group of disc golfers in Oak Ridge says the city is not keeping up with an agreement to maintain two city-owned courses.
Oak Ridge takes care of 16 parks, including Carl Yearwood Park and Groves Park.
"A lot of times and we'll end up spending anywhere from 20 to 30 minutes searching for a disc that landed in the middle of the fairway," Disc golf player Freddie Haddix said.
Haddix and his fellow disc golf players have had a hard time at Groves Park.
The grass is up to players' waists in many places, right where discs usually land.
But that's not all.
"You always end up with ticks though, which is the worst part about it," Haddix said. "I came out here one time, I believe I picked off 42 ticks."
Haddix is the vice president of the Innovation Valley Disc Golf Association.
They play weekly at the two disc golf courses in the city.
"We've got some great people that come play from all over the area," Haddix said.
The nearly 100 member club showed 10News a joint-use agreement it signed with the city in 2016.
It says the city will provide lawn mowing and tree and limb maintenance at the park.
But the club says the grass at Groves hasn't been mowed nearly enough for years, and freshly cut tree limbs are all over Yearwood Park.
"I'm not sure what exactly happened, but about three years ago, they just stopped keeping the grass up," Haddix said.
The city's parks and recreation department sent 10News a statement.
“The City maintains 16 parks, including the disc golf courses at Carl Yearwood and Groves Park, as well as several athletic facilities and nine miles of greenway," the Parks and Recreation Department said. "We are aware of maintenance concerns at Groves Park and are working to address them. Crews have been mowing the course this week and continue to work today. We thank those who have brought these issues to our attention.”
Haddix says until the city can cut the grass more regularly, they're moving their weekly tournaments to another course.