go hard or go home

English

Verb

go hard or go home (third-person singular simple present goes hard or goes home, present participle going hard or going home, simple past went hard or went home, past participle gone hard or gone home)

1. (often imperative, usually sports) To face a challenge by making a bold, superior effort, lest one give up and forgo the opportunity.
   • 2009 September 10, Larry Dorman, “Golf: Players Competing With a Sense of Urgency”, in New York Times, retrieved 17 November 2015:

     "Probably top five I would have to do, I’m guessing, to get into the Tour Championship. So it’s either that or a couple weeks off. Go hard or go home."

   • 2013 August 19, Catriona Menzies-Pike, “Does being a fitness fanatic make you a good politician?”, in Guardian, UK, retrieved 17 November 2015:

     He strikes me as more of a go hard or go home athlete, an impression reinforced by reports of aggressive and competitive behaviour.

   • 2014 October 3, Jordan Heath-Rawlings, “Unlikely Predictions: Eastern Conference”, in sportsnet.ca, Canada, retrieved 17 November 2015:

     Those kind of predictions are for the weak. We believe in going hard or going home. So these are real predictions—not probabilities.

   • 2015 January, Edward Jones, “Fundraising efforts had us bouncing off the wall”, in The University Paper: Newcastle Edition, UK, retrieved 17 November 2015, page 39:

     Members of the Newcastle University trampolining team went hard or went home when they took part in a 24-hour sponsored bounceathon.

Synonyms

• do or die
• fish or cut bait
• put up or shut up
• rise to the occasion

See also

• go big or go home