I just don't understand why the person with 98 nights didn't do a weekend mattress run for the final two nights, if they were truly interested in obtaining AMB status.
Yes, that's one of the aspects that I am referring to. There is a big difference between
1) Lots of stays throughout the year with consistent spend of $300-400 per night, then happened to be a no-show for a booking in late December due to a flight disruption; or
2) Accrued lots of credit card nights and a few stays during a double nights promotion, while most of the 30k spend comes from one RC cruise, then decides a couple of months into the next year to ask for an exception.
These are extreme examples, but that's why I find it difficult to say that it's outright "correct" or "wrong" not to grant the status just based on nights&spend figures.