Alias · Guard Passing
Top half pass
Also known as Half Guard Pass — the canonical term used on this site.
Training background: alternative name emphasising the starting position
Descriptive — passing from top half guard
Top half pass is a descriptive name for the half guard pass — naming the top position in the half-guard exchange from which the pass is launched.
Etymology. “Top half” is shorthand for being on top in half guard; “pass” names the objective. The term is plainly descriptive and widely used, distinguishing the passer’s side of the half-guard battle from the bottom player’s retention game.
Mechanics. The half-guard pass turns on the underhook: whichever player wins the underhook controls the near hip, so the passer fights to secure it before flattening the opponent and freeing the trapped leg. Losing the underhook hands the hip — and the sweep — to the bottom player.
Cross-reference. “Half guard passing” is a sibling alias. Full mechanical coverage on Half Guard Pass.