only game in town, the

Idioms  

1. The only choice, which one must accept for want of a better one. For example, Out here, this bank is the only game in town when it comes to financial services. This term, dating from the early 1900s, originally alluded to a gambler looking for a game in a strange town.

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Example Sentences

“His ‘toast’ comment was hearkening back to yesteryear,” when advertisers clamored to place their ads in newspapers as the only game in town, the Omaha Guild’s Cooper told me.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 4, 2019

My family lived in Arlington, Va., and because they were the only game in town, the lowly Washington Senators had me in their grip.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 29, 2014