{"id":20067,"date":"2023-08-26T19:51:17","date_gmt":"2023-08-27T00:51:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rollingaroundbjj.com\/?p=20067"},"modified":"2023-08-26T19:51:18","modified_gmt":"2023-08-27T00:51:18","slug":"open-guard-bjj","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rollingaroundbjj.com\/open-guard-bjj\/","title":{"rendered":"Open Guard BJJ Fundamentals (+ Different Types)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The quintessential jiu-jitsu element, without a doubt, is the guard. The ability to be offensive while your back is on the ground is unique among grappling martial arts and is what makes BJJ so efficient. Every guard employs the legs as a shield and means to control the person on top, and the two main types of guard are closed guard and open guard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The open guard is a position where your legs are not crossed around the opponent’s body. An effective open guard requires contact points and control over the opponent using your legs and arms in different configurations. Depending on the positions and configuration, there are many versions of open guards, like the butterfly, de la Riva, and spider guard<\/strong>s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While usually, the grappler on top is the one who does his best to open the guard and pass, open guards offer a lot of offensive options, and many BJJ players have made them a core part of their game. This article can bring you a tiny step closer to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>What Is A BJJ Open Guard<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

First of all, a guard position in BJJ is any position in which you are lying on your back and can use your legs to control the opponent, and an open guard is a position where your ankles are not crossed around the opponent’s back. But for a position to be considered an open guard, you also need to have contact with the opponent’s hips, arms, legs, or lapel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The more contact and control points you have, the better, with four being the optimal number. A simple example of contact points is having your feet on the opponent’s hips and a grip on at least one of his sleeves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conversely, you should always try to prevent the opponent from controlling both your legs, which makes his task of passing the guard much easier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The open guard offers much less control than the closed guard, where your legs are crossed behind the opponent, and you can control his hips. The transition from closed to open guard can happen voluntarily or be forced by the person on top, which is usually his main objective while he is stuck in top closed guard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While you have much better control in closed guard, the open guard gives you different options for sweeps<\/a>, setting up leg enchantments, going for submissions, and opening up a world of possibilities for both the bottom and top person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The open guard is a dynamic and fluid position that constantly flows into other types of sub-types of open guards, like the De La Riva or spider guard, among a dozen others, which can sometimes confuse people about the names.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regardless of whether you perfectly identify each position with its name or not, it\u2019s imperative to learn to be fluid in the transitions between the different open guards because they will often change in an instant during a roll.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The basic open guard position is considered the one where you have your feet on the hips of the opponent while on your back. The type of open guard depends on the body parts you control and have contact with and your position in relation to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Different Types Of Open Guards<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We’ve already quickly discussed the basic open guard, where you have two contact points with your feet on the opponent’s hips. When more contact points enter the equation, the type of open guard changes. Here are the most popular open guard variations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Butterfly Guard<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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