Wimbledon's ‘most beautiful debutant' worked as model and delivery driver and was left in tears over her bank balance
The Canadian qualified for the tournament and bagged £66,000 in the process.
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Branstine was defeated by world No1 Aryna Sabalenka but she was delighted to make just her second ever Grand Slam appearance.
It has been a difficult journey for the 24-year-old to reach the All England Club, with Branstine revealing she was reduced to tears after realising she only had £19 ($26) left in her bank account.
She told Telegraf.rs: "When you play ITF tournaments and finance your own life as a young athlete, everything is very expensive.
"I live in Southern California, and just filling up the tank was seriously draining my bill.
"I remember one morning, a couple of weeks before I played my first WTA final in Cancun, I looked at my account balance and only had $26.
"I thought about how I'm going to finance myself for the tournament now. I cried. I called my friends, I wasn't allowed to call my parents - if they found out, they would be very angry.
"I just said to myself, 'Don't think too much. Do it.' And so after training I drove around Los Angeles and delivered dinners to people."
Branstine, who has been labelled ' Wimbledon 's most beautiful debutant', funded her tennis career by working as a delivery driver.
She has also worked as a model and boasts a Bachelor's degree in Society, Ethics, and Law with a double minor in Philosophy and Sports Management.
The California resident even assisted a lawyer and attended court, working on cases involving family law.
But modelling is her favourite work outside of tennis, with Branstine admitting she loves being in front of the camera.
She said: "I love being in front of the camera during a shoot.
"It's fun, I love fashion. It's been one of the reasons I've been able to pay some of my trips.
"I didn't want to ask my parents for anything. I wanted everything to come from me and from my tennis.
"I wasn't signed by these agencies because of my tennis, it was for my look.
"Modelling and tennis are weirdly similar - you are an object a lot, and people sometimes forget you're a person too."
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