Alias · Top Positions
Scarf hold bottom
Also known as Kesa Gatame — Bottom — the canonical term used on this site.
Training background: descriptive — the English translation of kesa gatame
Descriptive — defending the scarf hold
Scarf hold bottom is a descriptive name for the kesa gatame bottom position — “scarf hold” translating kesa gatame, the head-and-arm side pin from underneath.
Etymology. “Scarf hold” renders kesa gatame, named for the way the controlling arm drapes around the head like a scarf; “bottom” frames the defending player. The label names the position from underneath in plain English.
Mechanics. Escaping the scarf hold turns on recovering hip mobility: bridging into the controlling player and shrimping the hips out creates the space to turn in or spin out, since the pin holds by keeping the bottom player’s hips flat and immobile, and restoring hip movement is what reopens an escape route.
Cross-reference. “Under scarf hold” is a sibling alias. Full mechanical coverage on Kesa Gatame — Bottom.