BJJ closed guard

[shamster]

I was wondering if it's hard for a lot of people to make effective use of the closed guard. It's the position I feel is my strongest. Maybe cause I am not a big guy and because of that, I end up on my back a lot so I got used to playing from there. Plus, I have pretty long legs compared to my torso, so it's easy for me to close them around an opponent and curl myself up.
However, I noticed that a lot of people don't like that position and get passed (or almost passed) fairly easily compared to me. And I am a beginner.
Any input please? Thanks!

[zhorner]

good for you. some people like it, some dont. look at the tito ortiz, frank shamrock fight. frank won that by basically staying in the guard the whole time. after tito got tired enough, frank got out and hit him a few times into submission.

it is a very good position, you have the advantage with arm bars, triangle choke, ect.... i dont know if you just do bjj, mixed martial arts, or what. but if you are doing something that alows strikes, just protect your face and you will be okay.

[shamster]

Yep, I do BJJ. Right now, I'm just focusing on grappling techniques. I do protect my face instinctively anyway, but I will probably worry about that more once I get better at the actual techniques.

I just wonder why others in my class don't do the closed guard as much. My first thought is that it's the easiest thing to do. Maybe it's cause I have long legs and I can curl up pretty well since I'm pretty thin.

[Tant01]

The torso scissors or "closed gaurd" is a good way to make your opponent very uncomfortable. I think too many people (BJJers) tend to forget that a closed gaurd (READ "SCISSORS") is a suffocation technique... SQUEEZE him hard and see how long he wants to stay there... This is what sets him up to want to pass your gaurd and how you can catch him in the moments of panic that he forgets to stack you for the pass or push down on your hips to open the gaurd position so he can transition to a half gaurd or side control... Keep the pressure on and see all the mistakes they make trying to escape your technique... Just a thought. I like it when they stand up in a closed gaurd so I can knock them down again...(double ankle grab sweep?)

[zhorner]

you stated....they dont do the closed guard that much.

do they prefer butterfly guard or half guard maybe?

if so, they are buffoons.

you probably like the guard because it is the best position to be in while on your back. much like the mount is the dominant top position, opposed to being in someones guard.

also, they might not like it because they, much like everyone else, have been told it is bad to be on your back. wrestlers were trained to stay off of their backs, every day fighters are told to stand up and going to the ground is for pussies.

just keep working on your guard and dont worry about your buddies, maybe you will change their mind about the guard after a couple of triangle chokes.

[shamster]

Thanks guys!

I go to a Royler Gracie school, so the guard is definitely not something looked down upon. I think it just happens that most people in my class just prefer to fight for the top position, whereas I actually prefer to pull someone into my guard from the start. I think another reason for me is that I am the lightest guy in class and since everyone else is not only bigger than me but has better technique, I don't feel safe when I'm on top. I tend to put up the best fight when I have someone in my closed guard.
Also, I don't know if this means anything, but I notice that the bigger guys in my class are the ones who seems to dislike being on their back the most.

[Memnoch1207]

Most people work on positions they are weak at, maybe they are strong at the guard position and are working on other positions?

My school starts all students from the guard position first, with the assumption that, you don't know how to fight, you will always be thrown down and mounted, so you better learn how to fight from that position first.

I think everyone should learn the guard first. I know a fighter who loves the guard so much, that I've watched him purposely pull fighters into his guard on a takedown, rather than trying to get the mounted position on a takedown.
But he's awesome at it, he has great feeling of where the other person is, his transition game is almost flawless. He can move from one submission attempt to another so smoothly, just based on how he feels the persons weight shifting.

[shamster]

It's not so much that they are strong at the guard. They actually said the guard is not their best position and they prefer to get a mount. Actually one of those guys last night wanted to work with me in his guard because he said he needs work on his guard.

We also spend a lot of time on our backs, come to think of it. For the past month, we have spent a lot of time dealing with countering guard passes and how to escape side controls, north south, etc. I totally agree with the idea of learning how to defend yourself before trying to become effective from offensive positions.

I sometimes wonder if the guard is more advantageous for people with certain body proportions.

[Memnoch1207]

I would rather work on what I am weak at, which is transitions...and just stay refreshed on what I am good at, pretty much nothing.