The 50/50 guard is one of those subjects that divide people’s opinions in BJJ. It used to be seen as a stalling position in the Gi, or simply a leg locking position in No-Gi. The truth is that the guard is much more versatile than that, and works perfectly regardless of attire. Moreover, you don’t just have to do heel hooks or stall from the position. It is in fact a guard that offers lots of options as long as you experiment with it a bit. The following 50/50 guard DVD instructionals will help you achieve it.
Give yourself every chance of beating people from the bottom learn the 50/50 guard and you won’t need to hunt for guard position anymore. People get into it without ever realizing that they’re there which means you won’t have to look for overcomplicated entries. That said, the guard also offers options of entering via inversions and Imanari rolls for those that have an eye for the attractive. Everything is covered in the 50/50 guard DVD instructionals we reviewed below.
The best 50 50 Guard DVDs
To be honest, I love the fact that the 50/50 guard divides opinions so much. That means people perceive it mostly in black and white which allows me to use it in the gray areas and achieve a lot of success. The thing is, people have been catching up as of late and that just meant I had to dig deeper and figure out details about the guard. The way to go for me was 50/50 guard DVD instructionals.
The thing to remember about the 50/50 guard is that it will allow people to do to you the same things you can do to them. that is why it is called the 50/50 after all. That just means that once you’re in the guard, you need to become a master of angles and grips in order to turn the initial 50/50 into at least an 80/20 for you. Only then can you achieve success with the guard, given that people will still think they have a 50% chance of beating you.
That said, the 50/50 guard will still open up crazy leg locking entries, slick sweeps, and even some nutty triangle submissions that will make people cringe. Combine that with the fact that this guard is notoriously difficult to pass and you have the perfect position to play off of your back against people that are bigger and more experienced than you.
The Best 50/50 Guard DVD Instructionals Collection
The number one 50/50guard DVD that we have as our top pick looks more like a leg locking DVD. that is because it is. Lachlan Giles used the position to beat three giant grapplers in the absolute of the ADCC by combining the guard with some innovative and very tight heel hook attacks.
Leg Lock Anthology: 50/50 by Lachlan Giles
Lachlan Giles is nothing if not versatile and pedantic. He does have a 50/50 instructional that is aimed at making people great at hunting heel hooks, but he also uses it to over the guard in extreme details. Given that this is and d8 part instructional, you can see how he has space and time to cover both. In fact, this is a 50/50guard instructional that has entries, transitions, retention, sweeps, and everything that other guard DVDs have. It is only in the submissions category that the attacks are very precise, and as proven, extremely effective.
Let me put it differently – you can’t hope to play the 50/50 guard, especially if you are more into No-Gi and leg locks, without ever learning about the material Lachlan presents in this instructional.
Apart from Lachlan, others also focus on the 50/50 guard in dedicated instructionals. It may also be from a leg locking perspective, or the complete opposite – the competitive modern Gi version of the 50/50. In any case, we have every resource you’ll ever need on the 50/50 right here!
Systematically Attacking From Open Guard Supine Position by Gordon Ryan
Ryan’s bottom guard game is obviously proven as one of the most effective in the world, at the largest stages of BJJ competition. While this is not a dedicated 50/50 guard DVD instructional, it does dedicate large chunks to this particular guard. The unique thing about this instructional is that it ties the 50/50 on with other guards like the X-guard variations and butterfly guard, making it an integral part of a very complex and hard-to-beat system.
Modern 50/50 Guard by Patrick Gaudio
Here’s a modern take on the 50/50 guard with the Gi on. Gaudio is one of the people that understand the position a lot, and he has had massive amounts of success with it when it comes to competing with the Gi, under IBJJF rules. This instructional si so good, the only reason why it is not our top pick is that Gaudio is one of the men that lost to Lachlan via a 50/50 heel hook in the ADCC.
KRISTIAN WOODMANSEE – 50/50 [ON DEMAND]
Woodmansee is another famous guard player that can pretty much beat everyone.. In this 50/50 guard DVD he dos exactly that – he provides a formula to beat 50/50 players. This instructional is great when you’re really trying to improve your 50/50, and you take a look at how world-class athletes approach solving it.
AUGUSTO “TANQUINHO” MENDES – GUARD GAME VOL. 2 [ON DEMAND]
Tanquinho features different guards in his “Complete Champion” guard series, and this volume is the one that features the 50/50 guard. Once again, you get a Gi instructional, aimed at the competitive uses of the guard in a precise rulest setting.
50 50 Guard by Ryan Hall
In Conclusion
Do not fool yourself into thinking you can be a proficient competitor at any level from purple elt above without the 50/50 guard. It does not matter if you prefer Go or No-Gi. The 50/50 is a must-have in your arsenal, and the few very carefully picked 50/50 guard DVD instructionals we presented today is literally all you will ever need to build a powerful and well-rounded 50/50 game for yourself.