You have a very interesting insight here -- now that I think about it, I see it. But I'm not sure I agree that it is for a good reason.
Intuitive understanding of math is better than rote memorization. But that does not mean that rote memorization is bad, only lesser. I'm also not convinced that many people can grasp something intuitively, bypassing rote memorization.
It’s also been noted that basically all great mathematicians are excellent at basic maths (memorized timetables) and can remember many numbers and can calculate in head quickly —— even though technically shouldn’t be necessary for proofs
Intuitive understanding of math is better than rote memorization. But that does not mean that rote memorization is bad, only lesser. I'm also not convinced that many people can grasp something intuitively, bypassing rote memorization.