Segundo Oliva Pinto Leads Latin America Amateur Championship

“I was pretty far behind when I started [the day],” said Oliva Pinto, who made it clear before the Championship that his one and only goal this week was to win. “I was trying to pull my thought into making good swings and doing my own thing. Some days, you pull that off and it’s a good result. Today that was the case.”

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Oliva Pinto is making his sixth Championship start and has never finished outside the top 15. He finished tied for third last year in Buenos Aires.

Another Argentinian Andy Schonbaum, the 36-hole leader, was in front for most of the day but stumbled to a double bogey on the 11th. He recovered well with birdies at the 13th and 14th holes but another double on the testing 18th left him at four-under, one back of Oliva Pinto.

Schonbaum is one of the more experienced players in the field. Aged 34, he is making his 10th LAAC appearance. His best finish prior to this event was a tie for 11th back in 2020.

Also on four-under is Brazil’s Eduardo Matarazzo. He posted a second straight 66 that included five birdies and just one dropped shot.

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Matarazzo is making his second LAAC start in 2026. In 2025, the Barry University freshman won the Citrus Intercollegiate for his first collegiate victory, finished fourth in the Brazilian Amateur and represented his country in the Eisenhower Trophy in Singapore.

The pressure will build for the final round as the competitors in contention begin to consider the prizes on offer in Lima this week. Those prizes could be life changing for the victor.