Brazilian jiu jitsu has a variety of guards but one every beginner has heard of is open guard. Open guard is perhaps not the easiest to come into as a beginner as it doesn’t dictate certified points of contact by default. Still there are some concepts and ideas that could help shape your game on a whole new level.
Three points of contact is the minimum you want.
Sleeve + Ankle + Foot on hip = 3 points.
Two sleeves + Foot on hip = 3 points.
Sleeve + Collar + DLR hook = 3 points.
That’s the idea. Get and maintain those points of contact. If one gets removed look to establish a new one so that you always have 3.
In a new clip ALec Baulding shows the fastest way to improve your open guard. This is a very useful open guard for beginner and advanced BJJ players:
“Developing a great guard takes time. I’ve seen a lot of frustrated beginners and higher belts that want to rush this process but I like to have students build from the ground up. Your retention has to be on point when playing an open guard because there will be gaps during transitions or positions where you don’t make optimal decisions. When that happens, your guard retention will be there to fill in those gaps. If you notice during the light positional sparring. The key was to have a partner not trying to win but trying to help the guy working on bottom to improve. ”
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