Someone once told me that the judo guys in the Olympics have about five throws that they focus on in training for competition.

How many throws are in your repertior?

How do you pick the throws?

Do you have a system or do you go with what feels good?

You will find as yo train longer and longer, that some throws have a higher success rate for you than others. I have never successfully executed tomoenage on anyone. Despite numerous attempts, so I stopped trying it. This process of trial and error eventually yields a small number of high-percentage techniques. It's about personal style.

For me, it's:

Tani Otoshi
Sukui nage
Kata guruma
sumi gaeshi
sode makikomi

All my throws are generically referred to as a "Frip Down".

ko soto
o soto
hari goshi
sumi gaeshi


these of course still need lots of work, but less than my other throws

sasae tsuri komi ashi
tomoenage
o soto gari
ko uchi gari
tani otoshi

probably tomoenage is my most successful throw even though I don't really want it to be

We don't have nearly as many specific throws as judo, but those that we have vary quite a bit in form as long as the principle throwing point is used--seoinage for instance, as long as the fulcrum is around the armpit and the arm functions as the lever, it is seoinage; the entrance, footwork, throwing direction and such arent specified. This generally seems to be where how our throws are seperated.

Forgive my ignorance if this is the same in judo, it seems that many variations are named seperately and much more specifically defined.

My most common (successful) ones are probably:
Gansekinage (family of throws, the spine is kinda used as the lever, against the hips)
Gyakuzeoi (seoi across opposite shoulder)
Osoto and koshi nage (well, usually more of a sweep or check in conjunction with arm locks)

I need to practice basic seoi/koshi/osoto a lot more.

I don't know none of dem der fan-cee names, but I like the hip toss (because it looks really cool when you do it right) and the figure-4 takedown (because I'm really good at it). Of course, double-leg and generic pick him up and throw him are good too...

Uchimata
O soto gari
Tai otoshi
Sumi Gaeshi
Sasae

Tai Otoshi
Hane Goshi
Ushiro Goshi
Utsuri Goshi
(Sode) Tsuri komi goshi

Which throws to choose.
Ideally you should have a throw for each side with the partner moving backwards, forwards, sidewards r + l .And have solutions against an opponent with dominant right or left grip. As well as combinations leading towards you favourite throws and combinations if those throws don't work.

That would end up in quite a number of throws , but - you can of cause work out how even just one throw could work in all those situations.
I do think that you have to train both sides !
You see a lot of left hand fighters getting quite far, because their opponents are mainly praticing right sided throws.

My throws ( all in combinations )
Ippon Seioe Nage <-> Ko Uchi Maki Komi
Left O Goshi<-> Left tani Otoshi
Lateral grip Uchi Mata <-> lateral grip sumi gaeshi
( holding his right arm with my left arm, my right arm over his back into his belt )
Te Guruma

At present I’m reworking my clinch techniques so I don’t really have a repertoire of throws. I was thinking of having a throw for when I have a headlock on someone, another throw for a body lock and a throw for a 2 on 1 or 3 on 1. I will also keep the high crotch single leg takedown as it is my highest percentage throw/takedown.

This means I need to pick 3 throws. But does picking throws based on how one holds onto the other guy a good way to go about it?

If you just start trying a learn "a throw" to match "a situation" you're going to have to start learning lots of throws and hope you have the right ones to match.

Alternatively you could learn a moderate series of simple yet diverse throws and learn about how the human body balances, then you can kinda make it up as necessary.

Sometimes these are outlined in a "cirriculum" like thing, in certain cases actually refined and integrated with a whole system dedicated to address this very question, with a tested structure that best communicates the principles. I could recommend a few, such as "joo doe."

Sorry if I'm snappy, I'm going to be riding on three days of constant homework and no sleep. Weeeeeee....

Fastball
Curveball
Slider

My current favorites:
- uchi mata from whizzer or as a counter to half-ass single legs
- tani otoshi
- ko soto gake, ko uchi gari, o uchi gari from close clinches

- uchi mata from whizzer

Is this it?

http://bjj.org/techniques/thetechniques/samboKneebar/

Hmmm, this should be a poll. Save me the trouble. I'd like to know what techniques to practice and basing it on the opinions of Bullshidoers is fine with me. Of course I just cartwheel out of the throw and toss sand in their eyes anyway.