The main idea to keep in mind is that a coach (or parent)should use sound judgement in determining whether or not a wrestler is ready to jump from Novice to Open. Is he (or she) getting any competition at Novice or just "wiping the mat" up with other Novice kids? When they do move up, are they getting "wiped up" by the Open kids? I personally think that a good coach or wise parent will seek out appropriate competition for their wrestlers regardless of their "unofficial" official qualifications as a Novice.