Help with loop code

The code below is more or less taken from the multipuck example. Its function is to remove any pucks that slide off the screen.

-- Automatic culling of offscreen objects  
local function removeOffscreenItems()  
 for i = 1, #allball do  
 local oneball = allball[i]  
 if (oneball.x) then  
 if oneball.x \< 50 or oneball.x \> display.contentWidth - 50 or oneball.y \< 30 or oneball.y \> display.contentHeight - 30 then  
 oneball:removeSelf()  
 end   
 end  
 end  
end  
  

I think I have a general understanding of the above code except for the line that reads:

  
if (oneball.x) then  

Could someone explain to me what this line of code does?
[import]uid: 78150 topic_id: 15720 reply_id: 315720[/import]

i think its just a check to make sure oneball is an object with a x value so the following lines of code doesnt kick out an error [import]uid: 7911 topic_id: 15720 reply_id: 58060[/import]