Open Guard

Open guard refers to any guard position where the bottom athlete's legs are not locked around the opponent — the feet and legs are actively managing distance and controlling the top athlete through hooks, frames, and grips rather than a closed-ankle lock. Open guard encompasses a huge variety of specific positions including butterfly guard, spider guard, lasso guard, de la Riva guard, reverse de la Riva, single leg X, X-guard, and seated guard. Modern competitive BJJ is heavily built around open guard systems.

In competition, open guard functions the same as closed guard from a scoring perspective — no points are awarded for playing open guard. Points come from actions: sweeps from open guard earn 2 points, and submission finishes from open guard win the match. The top athlete earns 3 points for passing any type of open guard. Different organizations do not distinguish between guard types for scoring purposes. IBJJF, NAGA, AGF, JJWL, and Grappling Industries all treat open guard positions the same in their scoring frameworks.

For youth competitors, open guard becomes increasingly important as they advance in skill. Beginners typically start with closed guard, but as opponents learn to break the closed guard, young athletes need open guard tools to maintain bottom-position effectiveness. Butterfly guard and seated guard are popular starting points for kids because they involve intuitive movements (hooking with the instep, framing with the arms). More complex open guards like spider guard and de la Riva require grip strength and flexibility that develop over time. Coaches typically introduce open guard concepts gradually as young athletes demonstrate comfort with closed guard fundamentals.