New Level Golf - 4995 HB Utility Iron

The New Level brand is somewhat “new” to the American market.

I say somewhat because New Level has been around since November of 2017. However, they have started making a name for themselves over the last 12 months or so hence this article.

Much like many of the new brands we find, Instagram had a lot to do with our introduction to New Level Golf. The images of their irons kept popping up on my feed, and when we attended the PGA Show back in January, we spoke with the CEO about the new clubs. It was an intriguing conversation, and in a short time, we learned a lot about the New Level brand.

They are a new iron company that has been making some serious waves in recent months. We’ve been fortunate enough to give one of their more popular irons a thorough workaround and have been looking forward to sharing what we’ve found with the club.

What kind of irons are we talking about here?

The good kind, FORGED! Well, almost. The 4995 HB Utility isn’t a forged head but it brings some excitement to their line of forged clubs that garners some attention.

Other than the Utility, New Level irons are forged from a one-piece and then milled for the final product. That is where the exotic looks come from you find on the cavity. The milling on the backside of a lot of their irons is just stunning. It’s a reason they are so eye-catching on Instagram.

Looks can’t be all you’re about though. When I started hearing golfers, I know to say such positive things about the clubs, I knew I needed to find out more. That lead to our meeting at the PGA Show. The booth New Level set up was small and in the corner of the room. Much like a lot of the new to the show brands. That doesn’t bother me; I’m just glad to see someone taking a risk (it is a risk to shell out a bunch of money to be a vendor at these shows) and put their product out there. Even though the booth was small, the provided space was put to use ideally. On display were several staff bags all housing a different variant of the irons.

To make a great booth, you can have the lights, the booth girls, the flashy items. Or, you can have some solid products. New Level, for this show, decided simple was enough because their product is the show. With Utility Irons, Irons, and wedges they have a lovely allotment of clubs.

Utility Iron:

4995 HB

Irons:

623 Forged Irons
902 Forged Irons
1031 Forged Irons
1126 Forged Irons

Wedges:

M-Type Forged Wedge

New Level sent us a 4995 HB for this review

However, they also decided to throw in a 54° M-Type Wedge in the black finish.

More on that club in a bit, first, let’s take a look at the 4995 HB Utility Iron.

From the New Level Website:

The 4995 HB is a hollow body, long iron replacement engineered for maximum ball speed and forgiveness.
The 304 stainless steel body is laser welded to a CS455 club face providing optimal weight distribution and face flexing.
Doing so, allowed us to maintain the lowest center of gravity possible as there is no wasted mass above the equator of the club head like other two-piece designs.
With its traditional looks and shape, the 4995 HB is designed to blend with any of our Iron models.

This club is vastly different than the Forged Irons. Being it is hollow, there is some incredible forgiveness that comes along with a pure strike. For me though, I struggled with the club from the moment I pulled it out on the range. And, I’ll add as a quick disclaimer it has nothing to do with the club. It’s user error.

The 4995 HB is a stunning club

From the look at the address position, the 4995 HB is very appealing. It has a sleek look to it and set’s up very nice. There is too much offset for my liking though. However, I don’t believe that it was relevant to my lack of skillset. When you make contact in the center of the face the ball explodes. I mean, EXPLODES. My main issues were hitting the club off the deck. I could never accomplish what I needed to do with the club to get it to perform. However, off the tee, the 4995 HB is a beast.

When teeing the ball up, it turned into a superstar of a golf club. So much I pulled my 5 wood from my bag for a bit to force myself to use it off the tee. The 4995 HB we received came in a loft of 24°, and at the time that was the same lofting as my Honma 5iron. Needless to say, it was causing some confusion in my bag.

I smoked the ball off the tee but did I want to have two identical lofts in my bag? One for the fairway and one for the tee? No, as much as I enjoyed hitting the 4995 HB off the tee, the reality was I play my 5iron on the course way more. A lot more than I would ever play the New Level club off the tee. So, for the time being, the 4995 HB is home in the garage waiting for the day I can hit the club as need be from both the tee box and the fairway (or rough).

We were not about to let my inefficiencies dictate this review, though!

The good thing about having friends that play golf is most of them are golf nerds too. Case in point, when I showed off the new 4995 HB, the drools from my boys were heavy. Like I said, and as you can see, the club is stunning.

But, I needed to find out if the performance was there for other players with a higher level skill set than my own. Ryan and I were hanging out at RoboGolf here in Henderson, and they have a very talented golfer that works out of the store. A pounder of the golf ball would be a more accurate statement. This kid crushes the ball. And while Ryan can most certainly bring it when it comes to launching golf balls, this young man is on another level.

The New Level 4995 HB is for real

Ryan was taking some swings with the 4995 HB and was getting it out there about 230-240yards. Not too shabby for a 5iron right? Overall Ryan has been impressed with the club. It no doubt performs but like my initial feelings about the offset, he agreed, and for him, it’s a reason he would not game it. But back to the RoboGolf gentleman. He took a few warmup swings with it, commented on the sharp looks and overall feel and weight of the club. Both positive in his opinion, then he swung away.

He had at least five swings where he carries the ball over 300 yards! NO JOKE. Now, that is, in no means, a performance figure you should entertain. But let me tell you, it was crazy impressive to see. Knowing the club could take a very high swing speed and put out a result as it did, to me, was a testament to the club builder. The 4995 HB, if you’re in the market for a driving iron, is one you should consider. It has the look, and the performance you’ll want in a utility iron.

I wish I had the skills to game the 4995 HB

The truth is I just haven’t been able to make the club perform. And based on what I’ve seen countless others do with the 4995 HB, it’s not the club. I love the look; I mean, I LOVE the look. It’s a fantastic visual while at the address position. And, when I have been able to make solid contact, the feel is tremendous. Unfortunately, there are too many variables that will not allow me to game the club.

There’s a real good chance from this review I’ve found out there is no need for a driving iron in my bag. That was something I wasn’t aware of before the clubs arrival. I honestly thought there was going to be a void the 4995 HB could fill, but I never found it. I wish I had because I’m a fan of what New Level is doing and I’d be happy to game their gear, well, this club that is…

The New Level M-Type Forged Wedge

As I mentioned earlier, New Level was kind enough to send along one of their blacked out M-Type wedges with the 4995 HB iron. This additional club was a welcomed surprise because at the time I was going through some wedge woes and I was eager to try anything that might work.

Appearance-wise, the New Level Wedge is flawless. It has a very traditional shape to it, and I’m a fan. It sets up nice at the address position and does not have an overly cumbersome look. The lines are clean, and the extra milling details you find on the club are gorgeous.

I love there is no offset. You feel like you could clip anything thing off the ground with this wedge and I’ve noticed that on the course. The weight is excellent, and the reaction I’ve gotten from well-struck balls, either chipping or hitting full shots has been fantastic.

There is only one thing I’m not fond of, and it bugs me to have to mention it, but I feel it needs to be said. The finish on the wedge, although it is stunning, takes away from the forged steel beneath the surface. All of my other forged wedges have a soft feel and instant feedback, because of the coating that’s missing. There’s an audible click that comes into play. The noise doesn’t bother me as much as I thought it would, but the lack of feedback has me wanting to try a non-coated version to see if I find the same results. Based on what I’ve noticed and what other players I have had swing the club, the consensus is whatever coated New Level is using to get that gorgeous black gloss finish is coming at a price.

Based on the two clubs we’ve tested New Level gets high marks from The Breakfast Ball

For a newer to the game player, New Level is impressive. James, who’s written a few articles on here and is a much-respected player in my mind, has a bag full of New Level irons and has been impressed with what he’s seen from them so far.

I’m certainly interested in checking out more of their clubs and seeing how they could fit into my game.

For more information regarding New Level Golf

Be sure to check out their WEBSITE and all of the following social media outlets. New Level is very active on their social pages often interacting with customers and voicing their opinions in heated discussions. I love seeing someone with a new brand taking full advantage of today’s resources to reach potential customers. Kudos to New Level for welcoming this new age of business!