[GrapplingDummy]

I own three half guard instructionals:

1- Rigan Machado (the old one)
2- Gordo
3- Stephen Kesting

Stephen Kesting's DVD REALLY explains the half guard very well. He did a great job breaking it down and show some options for different cases. The best part is, he actually explained it in English.

Gordo adds some good flashy moves that Kesting DVD didn't have but it doesn't explain them very well.

Rigan Machado his old half guard DVD is not that good but I heard he made a new one which I have not seen listed anywhere. I heard the new one was very good but I don't know for sure.

If you are not very advanced buy Stephen Kesting's half guard. It's not that expensive and you can get it from eBay even cheaper.

[Zankou]

Originally Posted by blanko

http://youtube.com/watch?v=TN6yBlson18

The awesomeness blinds me.

[blanko]

that's my favorite sweep

[Sherdog_Mutt]

Zankou: You've got to stop imitating my game! haha... I've been hard at work at the half-guard and the various variations thereof for the past 2+ years. You're right, it's extremely technical and it's a great way to neutralize a larger opponent (I face some behemoths who have cut down to my weight class at tournaments). There's nothing like the look on their faces when I pull half-guard, switch to quarter guard when they try to smash me, and nail a sweep straight into a nice hard knee ride. By the way, don't forget that you can spin for a triangle from quarter guard.

The next dimension of half-guard that I'm working on is when the top guy turns his back on you. I know 3 sweeps from this position but none of them work that well against experienced guys.

[Zankou]

Sigh ... I feel like I'm some petty clone of you. I guess imitation is the sincerest form of flattery?

I know exactly the position you are talking about. My professor says to try to half butterfly your way out of it, but I don't have much success with that. I have had some luck just grabbing the leg and wrenching it over with both my arms into a deep half guard situation. I also just saw that you can "turn into" the guy almost on your belly and drive him over from that position. It's a real problem though -- the guy will sit there and work for a kimura/take mount. Lots of guys do this at my gym. My current plan is to figure out how to alternate between taking the leg and the "drive into them on all fours" sweep. Either his leg is extended, in which case it is close enough to grab with both hands, or it is held back, in which case he has no base.

The other thing I am doing a lot of, which dovetails perfectly with half guard, is intentionally playing an "inferior position" game (against blue belts and lower) where I try to attack, control, and dominate from lousy positions like under side control, mount, turtle, etc. It really improves your game, and forces you to be hypertechnical. I call it my "escapes guard." It also annoys people to no end when you tap them from under side control or mount, which is part of the hilarity.

I purposefully try to play a "smaller man's game." Because even though it's harder for a bigger guy like me to learn, I find that it's a nightmare for people to try to play against a bigger guy who uses a smaller man's game. There is very little hope when somebody bigger than you with a slick half guard game gets you in his half guard.

[Sherdog_Mutt]

haha... it's good to see another "big" guy playing half-guard. I agree with you that a slick, technical small man's game is hell on other big guys. Hell, it's the secret to Pe de Pano's success in BJJ. Clone? Nonsense, I prefer to see you as what I'd be if I was in LA instead of OC.

In any case, I use these 4 options from the position we're talking about:

1) Half-butterfly sweep- Really hard to pull off. I find that it works better if I unlock the trapped leg (you have to use an arm to keep the leg trapped) while you try and work the sweep. Still, the guy sees it coming from a mile away and it's hard to nail it.

2) If he's completely facing your legs (no neck pressure at all on you), grab his head release the half-guard, bump and immediately go flat on your stomach (killing the leverage he needs to sit up). If you pull this off, you get side control. It's difficult to get this on guys my size and bigger.

3) There's also this variation of the half-butterfly. You shove the guys head and untrapped leg down (closer to your legs). You then use the butterfly hook to kick straight up and try to flip the guy over your head. Theoretically this should put you in the other guy's guard if you sit up in time. Realistically, the guy goes airborne for a second and you wind up with a scramble.

4) Finally, I pray and hold on for dear life until he gets frustrated or gets sloppy enough that he gives me enough space to push against his untrapped hip and return to a more traditional half-guard position (usually what happens).

If anyone's got any suggestions for dealing with this position, I'm all ears.

[wildcard_seven]

Originally Posted by Sherdog_Mutt

haha... it's good to see another "big" guy playing half-guard. I agree with you that a slick, technical small man's game is hell on other big guys. Hell, it's the secret to Pe de Pano's success in BJJ. Clone? Nonsense, I prefer to see you as what I'd be if I was in LA instead of OC.

In any case, I use these 4 options from the position we're talking about:

1) Half-butterfly sweep- Really hard to pull off. I find that it works better if I unlock the trapped leg (you have to use an arm to keep the leg trapped) while you try and work the sweep. Still, the guy sees it coming from a mile away and it's hard to nail it.

2) If he's completely facing your legs (no neck pressure at all on you), grab his head release the half-guard, bump and immediately go flat on your stomach (killing the leverage he needs to sit up). If you pull this off, you get side control. It's difficult to get this on guys my size and bigger.

3) There's also this variation of the half-butterfly. You shove the guys head and untrapped leg down (closer to your legs). You then use the butterfly hook to kick straight up and try to flip the guy over your head. Theoretically this should put you in the other guy's guard if you sit up in time. Realistically, the guy goes airborne for a second and you wind up with a scramble.

4) Finally, I pray and hold on for dear life until he gets frustrated or gets sloppy enough that he gives me enough space to push against his untrapped hip and return to a more traditional half-guard position (usually what happens).

If anyone's got any suggestions for dealing with this position, I'm all ears.

The man said he's all ears. It's been a year. Where is the solution? Or just as good, how about a single vid that addresses this.

[Sherdog_Mutt]

Originally Posted by wildcard_seven

The man said he's all ears. It's been a year. Where is the solution? Or just as good, how about a single vid that addresses this.

haha... Wow time really flies by on this forum. I can't believe how it has already been a year.

Thanks to one of the brown belts at my school (Shoyoroll), I have 2 high percentage sweeps from this position that I didn't have last year. I'll try to post a description of them later on.

[Zankou]

Originally Posted by Sherdog_Mutt

haha... Wow time really flies by on this forum. I can't believe how it has already been a year.

Thanks to one of the brown belts at my school (Shoyoroll), I have 2 high percentage sweeps from this position that I didn't have last year. I'll try to post a description of them later on.

Post a new thread on it. That would be great.

[stu3ufc]

i have seen a few

the best productionwise is gustavo machado

also kestings is awesome too