I think you have an excellent grasp of PHB's perspective. Accordingly, I also think that your understanding of Kabbalah is at least as profound as his.
You either accept the ToL as a valid map of reality or you don't. If you do, why use it sometimes and not others? If you don't, why use it at all?
I don't think one has to be deluded, as if there should be one truth, and only one way to understand Kabbalah. All understandings evolve, and are different from person to person. No two minds are same, and one can only try to understand other minds by linguistic contacts, which would be never perfect.
And I feel I don't have to accept or discard anything just because it is right or wrong.
Why one would, or would not use Tol sometimes is, I am guessing and repeating, but as I have explained to clos, there are situation where ToL does well -for example more metaphysical activities such as trying to find where God might be, where one's desire comes from, how things are made and come to being ...etc, but there are also cases where it is totally impotent such as answering to mundane questions for examples whether Mrs T will win Lotto jackpot this month, or is X a good partner for Y in business or marriage etc, which are mostly requested to be answered by general Tarot reading clients.
Of course, one could try explaining the readings based on the ToL path walkings to his clients, which will neither likely to be understood, nor appreciated. And does it warrant any advantages such as more accuracy in the answers of the readings for them? - I am not sure.