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Perhaps one of the most frustrating guards to pass is the deep half guard. A variation of the half guard, the deep half guard requires a BJJ practitioner to be completely underneath his opponent, using his opponent’s center of gravity against him by off-balancing him or attacking with submissions. Being in this position neutralizes one’s opponent’s weight as he/she off-balances them.
The deep half is so effective that a smaller BJJ practitioner with great deep half guard skills has the capacity to defeat a much larger opponent. Because the deep half is so dangerous, learning how to pass the deep half is a skill that all BJJ practitioners should have. Today, Evolve Daily shares How To Conquer The Deep Half Guard:
In this video, No-Gi BJJ World Champion Bruno Pucci shows 3 ways to pass the deep half guard:
Here are some concepts you can use to pass the deep half guard:
1) Free your leg
To finish any sweep from the deep half, you must use your legs to hook your opponent’s leg to off-balance him and break his posture. Thus, the only way to neutralize this is to flatten your opponent’s legs to stop him from hooking your leg and finishing the sweep. Bruno pushes the legs off his legs and holds them down in order to finish the pass.
2) Control the head
For your opponent to effectively sweep from the deep half, he must have your knee close to his head. This will help him control you and keep you in a position where it is easier for him to finish the sweep. Thus, controlling the head is a very important concept in passing the deep half guard. In the video above, watch how Bruno uses the cross face to prevent his opponent from sweeping him with the deep half guard. Remember to use shoulder pressure once you have the cross face!
3) Turn the deep half into a flattened half guard
Another option for passing the deep half guard is to turn it into a flattened half guard, as Bruno demonstrates in the video. The flattened half guard not only puts your opponent at a disadvantage, it also allows you to put more pressure on your opponent to let you finish the pass. In short, you’re in control as opposed to your opponent controlling you.
4) Keep your hips down to flatten your opponent
Regardless of whether you are passing the deep half or the half guard, the concept is the same – you must keep your hips down to flatten your opponent. Raising your hips only gives your opponent room to get his hooks in and sweep you. This space gives him the leverage to attack as opposed to being flat, where the only option is to use power to get you off him. And as you know, using power will only tire your opponent out – not a very efficient option at all.
5) Turn to reverse half guard pass
To pass the deep half guard, you can opt to turn it into a reverse half guard. To do so, slide your knee over your opponent’s head, away from the arm that’s trapping your leg. Sit on the ground and turn to face your opponent and get into the mount position. Doing so will prevent your opponent from going under you and finishing his/her attack from the deep half guard.
Although shutting down the deep half takes a lot of practice, knowing how to do so could certainly take your BJJ game to the next level. Don’t forget to get some drilling time in so you can practice your passing skills. So tell us, which of these concepts will you add to your arsenal of techniques today?
