Help with my half guard

[jnp]

Ya know, maybe I'm being silly here... but it looks to me like the top guy is really in a horrible position. He isn't very stable and can't post backward because of where his arm is, so a lot of what Koresh said. I'm thinking that if you can use your bottom leg to hook his bottom leg and keep his left arm in place with that over hook and your head you could easily hip bump or even pendulum into his half guard.

Let's assume for Kayman101's sake that not everyone he spars with maintains a poor top position like the guy in the photo. It's also possible that top guy lifted up for the photo so that we could better see bottom guy's position.

[kayman101]

Thanks for the solid advice, gentlemen!

I pulled that pic off the net to give you an idea of the position that troubles me. I do not have a spectacular visual memory, and it's difficult for me to describe. I'll give it a shot:

My opponent has his top arm controlling my neck (with his elbow driving into it) and using his bottom arm to push down on my knee. This makes getting a butterfly hook difficult because he has control of my leg. My top arm is usually trapped into his body and the pressure he's applying (plus his angle) makes it difficult to establish an underhook.

Against less skilled or lighter opponents, I simply sweep them over to the opposite side. Unfortunately, much larger individuals can hold me there and pry open my open guard which irritates me to no end. I hope this makes more sense.

In the meantime, I will take the excellent advice of seeking proper escape routes leading to more beneficial bottom positions.