Taiwanese golfer Yani Tseng has moved into the top spot in the standings for the LPGA Player of the Year award after winning the 2010 Women's British Open at Royal Birkdale Sunday. The 21-year-old held off Katherine Hull of Australia by one stroke to claim the title and 260,000 pounds (US$408,714) in prize money. The victory catapulted Tseng from the world's number five to the top place in the standings for the LPGA Player of the Year award, ahead of Japan's Ai Miyazato, the United States' Christie Ker and South Korea's Na Yeon Choi and Ji Yai Shin. Tseng also vaulted into the third place on the U.S. LPGA Tour's list of top earners for the year after she won the British Open. Tensg has racked up prizes totaling US$1.12 million so far this year, behind Shin with US$1.21 million and Choi with US$1.18 million. Tseng's total earnings in her golf career now approach US$4.2 million, which puts her in 40th place on the world list. Tseng made history Sunday by winning the British Open. She is the youngest woman golfer to capture three majors. Her previous wins came in the 2008 LPGA Championship and the Kraft Nabisco Championship in March this year. She is also the first Taiwanese golfer to conquer the coastal Royal Birkdale course since the LPGA Women's British Open was launched in 1976. Tseng realized the dream that veteran Taiwanese golfer Lu Liang-huan pursued 39 years ago. In 1971, Lu, now 75 years old, lost to Lee Buck Trevino of the United States at Royal Birkdale by one stroke. Tseng has become the fourth Asian golfer to have her name engraved on the championship trophy since the British Open was upgraded to a major LPGA event in 2001. The other three Asian winners have all been South Koreans. Tseng was also the first female golfer to win both the Kraft Nabisco Championship and the British Open in the same year. 