It’s not a new term. Going gold for a game is a term that I have heard since at least the early 2000s. I doubt it was new then, just probably when I first heard it.
It used to mean it’s the version that is going to be burned to the discs that you buy, which was a huge deal before downloadable updates. But I’m sure now it means it is the version they are uploading to Steam, PS store, Xbox store, etc.
My point was that they could have waited until two days before release, and if they were still fixing issues, they would have. The rule of thumb is the earlier something goes gold, the more stable the game is. It’s not perfect, but it is a trend.