Duke Butler III (2024) - Texas A&M Athletic Hall of Fame - Texas A&M Athletics

Duke Butler III

Induction:
2024
Class:
1970

Duke Butler III was a standout on the Aggie men's golf team for three years (1968-70) and was a member of the 1969 team that won the Southwest Conference Championship.

After his time in Aggieland, he went on to join the PGA Tour where he played in nearly 30 events from 1975-77. At the age of 29 in 1978, Butler III became the youngest tournament director of a tour event, overseeing the Houston Open, one of the oldest tournaments on the PGA Tour. He was also the Executive Director of the Houston Golf Association from 1978-1991. The College Station, Texas, native was inducted into the Texas Golf Hall of Fame in 1986.

Butler III was named as Tournament Director in 1992 on the PGA Tour and was eventually promoted to Senior Vice President of the tour. The lifelong promoter of the game was also the captain of the 2003 and 2005 USA Team for the Spirit International Amateur Championship.

The Aggie eventually left the PGA Tour staff in 2007 to become President of the Frys.Open Open, a fall tournament in California, which concluded in 2015. Butler was involved in more than $2B in net proceeds to worthy charities, retiring in late 2015.