[kingpin]

Laid-off GM worker Smallwood upsets Malott for first PBA title

WICHITA (AP) — Tom Smallwood got a major title with his first PBA Tour win, upsetting Wes Malott 244-228 at the PBA World Championship on Sunday.
Smallwood, a former assembly line worker who was laid off from his job with General Motors nearly a year ago, earned $50,000, a two-year exemption on the PBA Tour and his first chance to bowl in the Tournament of Champions in January

"It's surreal," Smallwood said. "It has been a wild ride."

The title match at Northrock Lanes was a nail-biter until the 10th frame.

Malott started with four strikes, but then ran into carry problems on the right lane. Smallwood stayed close, striking on five of his first six shots, but then left a 4-6-7 split in the seventh frame to give Malott the momentum.

The PBA Tour's player of the year wasn't able to put two strikes together in the final frames, however, and Smallwood answered with another four strikes in a row — including two in the 10th frame — to seal the victory.

"I was already so nervous in the 10th frame, I told myself I couldn't possibly get any more nervous," Smallwood said. "The right lane was my good lane anyway, so I figured if I threw a decent shot, I'd be OK."

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