Whisk together the flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl.
Add the cold, cubed butter to the flour mixture. Cut in, or blend in, the butter using a pastry cutter or a fork, until the butter is about the size of peas.
Using either your fingers or a spatula, stir in the water, a tablespoon at a time. I used 6 and ½ tablespoons total. Stop adding water when the dough begins forming large clumps. The dough should be moist and slightly sticky, but not wet, with no big pockets of dry flour remaining.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. With floured hands, fold the dough onto its self until all flour is incorporated, forming the dough into a ball. Use a light hand to keep the butter from melting and to prevent too much gluten formation.
Divide the ball in half. Flatten each ball into a disc and wrap tightly with plastic wrap.
Refrigerate the dough for two hours or for up to three days before using.
When ready to roll out the dough, let the dough rest on the counter to warm up a bit before using. The dough should still be cool when working with it. You want to be able to roll it out without cracking but not be too warm to melt the butter and become sticky.
Place the dough on a lightly floured surface or a non-stick rolling mat. Roll from the center outward, rotating the dough 180 degrees, with your hands, every so often. This helps keep its round shape and prevents sticking. Add a little more flour if needed to prevent sticking.
Roll the dough to about ⅛" thick and about 12" round. Lightly roll the dough up with your rolling pin, about halfway.
Lay the dough onto the pie dish. Ease the dough, without stretching, into the dish.
If making a double crust or lattice pie, refrigerate before proceeding with your recipe. If you're using the bottom crust only for your recipe, crimp or decorate the edges, then refrigerate.
Refer to your pie recipe on how to proceed.