Serena becomes top-earning female athlete ever

Serena Williams became the richest female athlete ever, after she won her semifinal match at the Australian Open, surpassing golf star Annika Sorenstam by $180,383.

Williams now has a total of $22,753,575.

"I'm thrilled with the news! I remember earning my first cheque of $240 at Québec City in 1995 and while I knew that I could have a great career in tennis, I could not have imagined or dreamed of all of this," Williams said. "It's amazing how much women's tennis has grown since I joined the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour 14 years ago. I am very proud to have reached this milestone for me, my family and all women athletes out there. This achievement shows that if you put your mind to it, you can achieve anything."

"This is an historic milestone, not just for Serena but all women athletes," said Larry Scott, Chairman & CEO of the Tour. "Serena is one of the all time great champions in the history of our sport and this achievement is a product of Serena's amazing on-court accomplishments over an extended time period."

Prize Money Milestones in Women's Tennis

- In 1971, total Tour prize money for 19 events was $309,100; in 2009, it has grown to over $86 million at the Tour's 55 events (including the Grand Slams).

- In 1971, Billie Jean King became the first female athlete to pass the six figure mark in single season earnings; in 2008, 143 women earned over $100,000.

- In 1976, Chris Evert became the first female athlete to pass $1 million in career earnings at Palm Springs; in 1986, Martina Navratilova became the first woman to pass $10 million in career earnings at the US Indoors, and it was Navratilova eight years later at 1994 Filderstadt who became the first to pass $20 million.

- By winning Wimbledon in 1982, Navratilova became the all-time prize money leader in tennis, overtaking both Evert and Jimmy Connors, a mantle she held until 1989; later that year, she became the first female athlete to pass $1 million in a single season, finishing with $1,475,055.

- In 1984, Navratilova surpassed the $2 million mark in season earnings; in 1997, Martina Hingis passed the $3 million mark; in 2003, Kim Clijsters passed the $4 million plateau; and in 2007, Justine Henin became the first woman in sports to pass $5 mllion in single sason earnings.

- On three occasions, a woman has been the top earner (men or women) in tennis: 1984 (Navratilova), 1991 (Monica Seles) and 2003 (Kim Clijsters).