River Crossing can hold its own when compared with other Hill Country public courses (it is not a private club contra what the website states). The course is maintained in decent condition, with the greens being the best feature. The out-of-town owners (Scottsdale Golf Group) nixed over-seeding the fairways in winter several years ago. There were a few bad summers during the drought when the fairways were cart path only due to water shortages. The event center seems to be holding its own and has become a more frequented wedding destination. The restaurant fare can be uneven, but stay with the basics and you'll be fine. The bad news is for members. Shortly after the previous owner sold the club, the new owners wasted no time increasing the annual membership dues. And, inexplicably, they have continued to raise them every year for the past five years. This is quite unusual for a private club or even for a public course. The first couple of years there were explanations of raising dues to keep up with other local courses, then to offset rising costs, but this year there was no explanation whatsoever, no apology, no excuses. Simply, "turn the letter over for the new 2016 dues structure." Scottsdale Golf Group owns/manages several other golf courses in the greater Phoenix area (have those courses seen annual dues increases for the past five years? Questionable; there's too much competition from the 120 some courses in the Valley). So why has the GM at River Crossing raised dues every year for five years in a row? There is no explanation coming, as the Advisory Board consisting of club members was also disbanded when the new owners took over, giving the appearance that owners may not be interested in listening to input from members. In any event, River Crossing management continues to talk about the goal to become a private club. To do that, they need to recruit a lot of new members to replace all the ones who left. But one must ask, who would recommend a friend to join a club where the dues are increased every year? So before you think of signing on the dotted line to join up, be sure to ask about the annual dues increases that River Crossing has no problem imposing on the current membership, and for how much longer will they continue. read more