There was a reference in another thread to a type called the Centurion elite: program elite status gained by a premium credit card or lots of spending on a card and thus with no real knowledge of the brand(s) and loyalty program that are commonly gained from repeated use.

Brushing up on the HHonors T&Cs - with particular attention to elite benefits by brand - seems like good advice.

http://hhonors3.hilton.com/en/explor...its/index.html

http://hhonors3.hilton.com/en/terms/index.html