Verb
make a fist of (third-person singular simple present makes a fist of, present participle making a fist of, simple past and past participle made a fist of)
To do (something) reasonably successfully.
He had a go at the restaurant business and made a fairly decent fist of it.
There are five issues that make a fist of a hand that can knock America out cold. They're lack of jobs, obesity, diabetes, homelessness, and lack of good education. will.i.am