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Times & Transcript Staff

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Fredericton's Jamie Arbeau spent his Labour Day Weekend making it look easy as he cruised to a 7-shot victory at the St. John Valley Open played at the Aroostook Valley Country Club.

Arbeau posted a two-day total of 140 and for his efforts he collected 20 points in the Canadian 2 for 1 Pizza N.B. Men's Player of the Year standings. The win moves Arbeau into 19th place in the overall standings and gives him a solid grasp for a spot on the North team for the 2008 Canadian 2 for 1 Pizza Estabrooks Cup.

Six-time Canadian 2 for 1 Pizza N.B. Player of the Year Tony MacKinnon of Fredericton finished second at 147, earning 17 points. These are MacKinnon's first points of the year as he sits poised to make a late charge for a spot on the North team.

Michael Hexby (U.S.A.) finished third at 148 while Herrick Hanson (Aroostook), Denis Beaulieu (St-Quentin) and Ken Johnson (U.S.A.) finished in a tie for fourth place (10.3 points).

Other players collecting points were Jason Snow (Hampton), Bob Brown (Fredericton), Curtis Sappier (Aroostook) and Jace Pearson (U.S.A.) -- T7th (6.5 points), Steve Clarke (U.S.A.) -- 11th (no points), Dax Phillips (Fredericton) and Gary Melanson (Covered Bridge) -- T12th (2.5 points), John Fitzgerald (Fredericton) and Gary Greene (Covered Bridge) T14th (1 point).

Moncton's Mathieu Gingras continues to hold a commanding lead in the standings with 85 points. Fredericton's Eric Coffin sits in second place with 55.3 points while David Freeman of Petitcodiac remains in third spot with 53.5 points.

Closely linked to the Canadian 2 for 1 Pizza Player of the Year Challenge is the Estabrooks Cup. The Canadian 2 for 1 Pizza Estabrooks Cup is a Ryder Cup style format that pits the top golfers of the North against the top golfers of the South in a battle for New Brunswick's golf supremacy. Twelve-player teams are selected for both the North and South to compete in a two-day tournament containing fourball matches, foursome matches and singles matches. This year's Estabrooks Cup will be held Oct. 4-5 at the Edmundston Fraser Golf Club.

The South team, captained by Wynn Meldrum, will try to make it three in a row and he'll do so with the help of some of the hottest players in the province. Gingras, Freeman, Tom Keddy (Hillsborough), Scott Weatherhead (Westfield) and Jean Mainville (Fox Creek) are all a lock for team positions. Also currently holding down spots in the top 10 are Riverside's Ed Reevey, Hampton's Jason Snow, Riverside's Jason Roach, Fox Creek's Matt Layden and Riverside's Darren Roach. Those players vying for captain's pick invitations include Dale Kinnie (Moncton), Kevin Farmer (Herring Cove), Greg Jones (Country Meadows) and Darren Ritchie (Hampton).

Next up on the schedule is the Ganong Tour Championship (Moncton Golf & Country Club) scheduled for Sept. 6-7. The Canadian 2 for 1 Pizza season wraps up with the Covered Bridge Invitational on Sept. 13-14.