Learn English – English proverb for “They danced, but didn’t take a bow”, as for failing good work on a final step

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There is proverb in Ukrainian, "They danced and danced, but didn't take a bow" (Танцювали, танцювали, та не вклонилися).

It is used to point out that someone has put a significant amount of time and effort into performing or creating something (which is emphasized by repetition of the dance in the original), but compromised their work at the stage of representation or polishing the final result.

For example, it can be applied to these situations:

  • The software was released after years of development to provide great performance and stability, but its interface is user-unfriendly and designed poorly
  • He wrote a brilliant essay, but didn't bother to spellcheck it, ruining all the good impression of his work
  • Bob cooked a fancy meal for his date, but served it on disposable plates, because he was too lazy to do the dishes afterwards

What would be an English proverb or idiom to express the same context?

The expressions with a similar, but not quite satisfying connotation I've found so far:

spoil the ship for a hap'orth of tar

being about a lack of a small amount of effort ruining something big or important, it doesn't cover "final step" part

A drop of poison infects the whole tun of wine

and it's analogues are mainly about a little amount of detrimental thing
spoiling something good

Good idea, bad implementation

suggests that the whole actual work was flawed, when in our case realization can be good at major stages

Best Answer

There is a phrase that has been adopted from gymnastics stick the landing, meaning to hold perfect form in the final jump or dismount.

The term has been adopted into broader usage

Execute flawlessly from the beginning through the end. Follow through. All phases of the sales cycle require great attention to detail but to be successful, we must "stick the landing" to close the deal.

(The Urban Dictionary)

The question is about the antithesis. You could say

He gave quite a performance, but ultimately failed to stick the landing.

Or you could turn around a well known aphorism and say

He snatched defeat from the jaws of victory

The original, is attributed to US Congressional Representative James Seddon of Virginia for claiming that a regiment in the Mexican-American war had "snatched victory from the jaws of defeat."