Mark Leishman used to think he had it all figured out until the cold, hard reality of golf slapped him in the face.
That's why Australia's newly-crowned player of the year is refusing to let himself get carried away with a career-best season on the US PGA Tour.
Leishman is seeking to add to his Arnold Palmer Invitational and BMW Championship wins this year at the Australian PGA Championship, which starts on Thursday at the Royal Pines Resort on the Gold Coast.
The rich $1.5 million tournament shapes as something of a home victory lap for the 34-year-old, whose rise as Australia's hottest golfer was marked with the Greg Normal Medal on Tuesday night.
Leishman has shown remarkable consistency in 2017, finishing in the top 25 of all bar nine of his 25 events and earning nearly $US6 million ($7.9m) in the process.
The next obvious step for him is to win a major but the world No.13 won't be putting undue pressure on himself to achieve it.
"A lot of things have to go right to do that," Leishman said.
"There's only four majors every year. You've got to play well on the right week.
"So if I can just keep playing the way I have been, play well more consistently, I feel like that gives me my best chance to try and contend and win majors.
"A year like that definitely gives you confidence... (but) golf's a funny game.
"You think you've got it ... I've thought that once and I said to myself I'm never going to do that again because it really can give you a kick in the butt pretty quick and put you back into place.
"That's the great thing about the game. You can go out and shoot 60 one day and you can go and stand on the first tee the next day and you're no more entitled than anyone else to shoot 65 or 85."
Leishman is due to tee off at 11.10am local time at Royal Pines alongside defending Kirkwood Cup champion Harold Varner III.
