This is one of those tales that, like at the beginning of a movie, needs a tagline reminding readers that 'this is a true story'.

Because this IS a true story.

When Dominick Mosejczuk was three years old, he went to the 2010 US Open with his Mom, Agnes.

It was an easy trip for the duo; they lived in East Elmhurst, Queens, so a quick ride on the subway got them to the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

Dominick, being a toddler, had no interest in the matches in the stadiums, so Agnes took him to the American Express Fan Experience area by the East entrance of the facility.

And while there, Dominick played a game where kids had to hit tennis balls into a target to win a prize.

“And I won like 10 prizes in one game,” he recalled on Sunday. “It was beginners luck and it was crazy.”

An employee of the National Tennis Center’s teaching program saw Dominick’s impressive display, clearing out their prize haul, and told Agnes she should sign him up for tennis lessons.

Three weeks later, and for the next five years, Dominick learned the game on the same courts that the US Open is played on.

Sunday afternoon, on the same hallowed ground he’d spent hours traversing, Mosejczuk made a lifetime memory.

Defeating No. 7 seed Hayden Jones, 6-3, 7-6 (10-8) on Court 4, Mosejczuk impressed the many college coaches watching and made Agnes the happiest person in the place after the first round win.

“He’s a fighter, and works so hard, and he knows these grounds as well as anybody,” she said moments after the match. “To win here, where he played as a little boy … I’m so proud of him.”

Mosejczuk, 17, came out blazing against Jones, ripping off a quick first set and breaking serve three times.

But the second set was much tougher as Jones, a quarter-finalist at the Australian Open, battled back and kept holding serve.

At 5-all the two had a epic game on Mosejczuk’s serve, a 14-point battle of wills that the American finally captured.

“I wasn’t nervous all week leading up to the match, but then when I stepped on the court, I got really nervous because it’s the US Open,” Mosejczuk said. (That 5-all game) I was just focusing on hitting my serve as hard as I can, because it’s the one shot my opponent has no control over.”

Mosejczuk then battled in the tiebreaker, losing two match points before finally finishing on a bold net approach, digging out a Jones drop volley before forcing a Jones forehand into the net.

“Biggest win of my life,” Mosejczuk said. “I spent every year of my life coming here to the Open, 14 straight years except for one year. I watched Alcaraz, Sinner, Roger Federer who’s my favorite player. Just always wanted to come here and play.”

After leaving the National Tennis Center training Center at age 9, Mosejczuk has bounced around several training facilities, including at the USTA in Orlando, before spending 2023 at the BTT Academy in Barcelona. Mosejczuk has seen his results improve in the past 18 months, with a 2023 Orange Bowl 16s title in Florida last December being a particular highlight.

Now, the hometown kid hopes to play college tennis in a few years, but first he has more memories to make at his “backyard” courts.