Masters sensation Guan Tianlang said he hopes to represent China at this year's Asian Games but pledged not to play too many big events this year as he focuses on building a long-term career.
The 15-year-old amateur shot a disappointing 76 in the Volvo China Open second round on Friday to lie three shots off the projected cut, a far cry from his Masters exploits a year ago.
Last April at Augusta, Guan earned rave reviews when he became the youngest player to make the cut in a major championship, aged just 14 years and five months.
He followed that by reaching the weekend play at his next PGA event, the Zurich Classic in New Orleans, but a missed cut at December's Hong Kong Open ended a breakthrough 2013 on a quiet note.
However, the Guangzhou schoolboy is confident he's on the right path, and he will play fewer professional tournaments this year as he carefully plots his road to success.
"I think definitely I'm making the right progress," said Guan at the Genzon Golf Club in Shenzhen.
"Last year I had a great tournament (at the Masters) and lots of great experiences and this year I didn't want to play too many tournaments at first because it's still not the right time.
"Last year I played maybe 10 to 12. I played in a couple of really big ones so I got great experience from that."
Guan appears comfortable in the spotlight and he was a star attraction at the 20th edition of China's national championship, a $3.2 million event co-sanctioned by the European Tour and OneAsia.
He opened with a solid one-under-par 71 on Thursday but struggled on the greens in round two, missing short putts for par at 18 and two and finishing with a four-over 76 to leave him at plus three.
The cut is expected to be around level par.
"I'm a little bit disappointed, the swing just wasn't there," he said, adding that perhaps the lack of recent tournament practice was a factor.
But the great hope of Chinese golf is happy to bide his time, saying he has no immediate plans to turn professional and no target for when he'd like to break into the world's top ranks.
"I'm focusing back on my school and my body," the slight youngster said, referring to his attempts to bulk up in a bid to hit the ball further.
"I don't have any plans for a timetable yet. To keep playing in those high-level tournaments is wonderful so I don't start thinking about it yet."
