Josh Goodall admits he may have to examine his future in the sport in the near future after another first-round defeat at Wimbledon.
Goodall suffered the disappointment of becoming the first British player to exit this year's tournament as he slipped to defeat against Grega Zemlja.
The 26-year-old from Basingstoke was the first of five home hopes to take to the grass on the opening day of this year's Championships but, despite moments of promise, left Court Three as the first loser, going down 6-4 3-6 7-6 (7/3) 6-4.
Two double faults in the third-set tie-break undermined Goodall's victory bid against a player who won the recent Challenger tournament in Nottingham.
The Briton, exiting in round one for the fourth time in four visits to SW19, plans to enter qualifying for the US Open but concedes that should his ranking not improve in the near future he may need to reassess where his career is heading.
He added: "These are matches you need to win. If you need to make a good living out of this sport, the matches today are the ones that are going to make a difference.
"I could probably hang around being 200 in the world for the rest of my career, but is that what I really want? I don't think it is."
Asked if he had considered seeking additional coaching, the world number 215 admitted that competing on the tour is already a financial struggle, without incurring extra costs.
"If I was getting thrashed every time I could say, 'Well, I'm not good enough', but I don't feel like that's the case.
"I'm not financially in the best state. Obviously playing Wimbledon helps a lot, but I've got rent to pay and stuff like that. I can't really afford things.
"I'm number four in Great Britain and I'm making a living, don't get me wrong. But if I want to put a deposit down on a house, which I'm looking to do, the problem lies at the moment that I'm having to win to do it.
"Those are pressures that not everyone is under, and it's quite difficult."
