Vu started the day four shots back but marched up the leaderboard with five birdies – including two on 17 and 18 – and one bogey, carding a four-under par 68.

She waited on the sidelines as previous leader Yin (72) let the affair slip to a tiebreak with a pair of late bogeys.

Yin did not put up much of a fight in the playoff as her second shot hit the water and Vu, who collected her first title on the tour at the Honda LPGA Thailand in February, was overcome with emotion as she drained a birdie putt for the win.

“I can’t even put into words what I was feeling – I was nervous, I was scared, I was cold,” said Vu, who had considered quitting the game only a few years ago.

“I just wanted to hit the putt.”

Players adapted to fresh territory at the year’s first women’s major, as the tournament kicked off in a new home after some five decades at Mission Country Club in Palm Springs.