Butler holds five-stroke lead heading into final round of 93 Abierto Telecom del Centro
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CORDOBA, Argentina – J.M. Butler posted a third-round 6-under 65 to extend his lead to five strokes heading into the final round of the 93 Abierto Telecom del Centro presentado por Zurich. Ryan Grider and Theo Humphrey stand tied for second at 14-under, and two players are tied for fourth at 13-under.
Butler posted his second bogey-free round of the tournament, carding a total of 20 birdies against a singular bogey – both of which lead the field. A 5-under 35 front-nine followed by a 1-under back-nine resulted in Butler’s first tournament with three consecutive rounds in the 60s since the 2024 BioSteel Championship. At 19-under 194, Butler ties his career-low 54-hole total (194/2024 Times Colonist Victoria Open presented by Andrew Sheret Limited), and enters the final round with the solo lead for the first time in his career.
The second-year member matches the largest lead on PGA TOUR Americas since the 2024 Inter Rapidísimo Golf Championship, where current Korn Ferry Tour member Harry Hillier also held a five-stroke lead going into the final round. Hillier went on to win by eight strokes, securing a spot in The 10 for the remainder of the season and go on to earn a Korn Ferry Tour card.
The Auburn alum, who helped lead the Tigers to the program’s first national championship title in 2024 in addition to being a three-time individual winner and All-American, looks to capture his first career victory on Sunday. Butler finished No. 80 in the 2024 Fortinet Cup standings off the strength of a season-best T5 finish at the Times Colonist Victoria Open presented by Andrew Sheret Limited where he co-led after the second round.
Final round tee times will run from 7:00 a.m. through 10:44 a.m. ET, in threesomes, off the No. 1 tee. Butler, Grider and Humphrey will close out the final grouping.