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It’s been a long time coming, but the South finally has more Canadian 2 for 1 Pizza Estabrooks Cup wins than the North.

Team South put the finishing touches on their third straight win at the Cup in Edmundston on Sunday, finishing off Team North, which included Gary Melanson, Sean Kee and Wade Girdwood of the Covered Bridge Golf and Country Club of Hartland, 15 to 9 to take a 6-5 overall lead in the challenge series.

The victory marked the second straight year where the South won big and the fifth time in sixth years the Southerners were victorious.

The tournament was in tribute to a beloved longtime athlete in the sport, as players on both sides wore black ribbons throughout to honour Fredericton's Mel Murray, who passed away recently after a two-year battle with cancer.

Murray was a fixture on the North team, playing in every Estabrooks Cup until missing his first one in 2007.

In the event's first day of play on Saturday, North and South found themselves deadlocked at 6-6.

The North had the upper-hand in the morning fourball (bestball) matches but South responded in the afternoon foursome (alternate shot) matches, leaving the teams tied heading into Sunday's singles matches.

The North got off to the start they wanted, building a 4-2 lead by the end of morning fourball action.

Veteran Tony MacKinnon and his Fredericton clubmate James Sanford grabbed the first points of the day with a 3 and 2 win over South's Ken Comeau and Drew McCafferty, both of Moncton.

South answered back immediately when captain's pick Darren Ritchie (Hampton) and Jason Roach (Riverside) defeated North's Alain Plourde (Edmundston) and Michel Landry (Kingswood) 2UP.

Things stayed tied when North's Wilf Pilgrim (Kingswood) and Darren MacPherson (Restigouche) finished all square with South's David Freeman (Petitcodiac) and Jamie Thibault (Moncton).

North moved ahead when captain's pick Herrick Hansen (Aroostook) and Kee earned a 2UP victory over Kevin Farmer (Herring Cove) and Scott Weatherhead (Westfield).

North's Jamie Arbeau (Fredericton) and Girdwood ended all square with Jason Snow (Hampton) and Ed Reevey (Riverside).

In the last match of the day, North grabbed their fourth point when Melanson and Adam Atkinson (Fredericton) won 4 and 3 against Greg Jones (Country Meadows) and Dale Kinnie (Moncton).

In the first match of the afternoon, South's Ken Comeau and Drew McCafferty rebounded from a morning loss to beat North's Atkinson and Sanford 2 and 1.

South kept Ritchie and Roach together for the afternoon match and it definitely paid off as they beat up on North's MacKinnon and Kee, winning 6 and 5.

South claimed their third straight foursome win when Farmer and Weatherhead posted a 3 and 2 victory over the North team of Girdwood and Melanson.

North finally stopped the bleeding in the fourth match of the afternoon when Plourde and MacPherson defeated the South team of Thibault and Freeman 1UP.

North claimed their second straight afternoon match when Landry and Arbeau defeated Reevey and Snow 1UP.

In the final match, South's Jones and Kinnie put the finishing touches on a big South afternoon, handing North's Hansen and Pilgrim a 2 and 1 defeat.

In day two, the North was no match for the South.

In the first match of the morning, Ritchie - a Canadian 2 for 1 Pizza Estabrooks Cup veteran - put an exclamation mark on his choice as a captain's pick.

Ritchie picked up his third point of the weekend when he defeated Kee 3 and 2.

South made it two straight to start the morning when Farmer posted a 1UP victory over North's Hansen.

South then grabbed their third point in a row when Freeman finished off the host club's Plourde 4 and 2.

North finally responded when Pilgrim, playing in his second Estabrooks Cup, defeated Estabrooks Cup rookie Thibault 5 and 4.

South then earned their fourth point of the morning when Snow defeated Girdwood 3 and 2.

The fifth match of the day, featuring Arbeau and Jones did little to separate the teams as the two veterans finished all-square.

South veteran Comeau then brought his side to the brink of victory by besting Sanford 3 and 1.

When Roach completed his perfect 3-0 weekend by defeating Landry 4 and 3, the South had their third straight win.

In the remaining matches, Kinnie defeated Atkinson 2 and 1; MacKinnon topped McCafferty 2 and 1; Roach posted a 4 and 3 victory over Landry; MacPherson and Reevey finished all-square, while Weatherhead defeated Melanson 1UP.

South Captain Wynn Meldrum summed up the weekend by saying he was pleased with how both teams competed on the weekend.

"Even though the South won, there can be no losers when as many athletes and gentlemen get together to play the game they all love," he said.

North Captain John Townsend was gracious in defeat, saying, "while I'm disappointed the North lost, I was very happy to be a part of this celebration of golf and most importantly, this celebration of Mel Murray.

"And though it cost us, I was very happy to see Darren Ritchie earn three points, as a tribute to his good friend Mel."

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 dominance.

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.

The first 10 positions on each team are filled on the basis of final point standings in the Canadian 2 for 1 Pizza Player of Year Challenge, which allowed Melanson, Kee and Girdwood to qualify for the title event.

The final two spots on each team were reserved as captains' picks, which were determined prior to the finals.