Royal Dornoch Golf Club has joined forces with the University of the Highlands and Islands to establish a golf degree course and a launch event will be held at the Fairmont St Andrews on Sunday 8 March.

Royal Dornoch Golf Club has joined forces with the University of the Highlands and Islands to establish Scotland's first golf degree course.

From September amateur players with a desire to pursue a career in the sport can combine the classroom with the fairway by studying for a BA (Hons) professional golf qualification

The four-year degree will be based at the Dornoch campus of North Highland College UHI, part of the University of the Highlands and Islands, and next to the Royal Dornoch Golf Club, whose famous Championship course was ranked sixth in the world by Golf Digest in 2014.

The degree programme will focus on themes to prepare budding pros for the demands of the golf industry. The opportunity to combine the themes of coaching and golf equipment technology with sports science and business will aid students' preparation for a range of career paths.

The course combines practical training, coaching and playing opportunities with study in academic subject areas. Students will also work in industry-based placement opportunities throughout their degree to further develop and apply their knowledge.

To be eligible, students must have a current golf handicap of 4.4 or lower for men and 6.4 or lower for women.

Former European Tour golfer, Lesley Mackay, has recently taken up a lecturing role with the University of the Highlands and Islands. Lesley will be directly involved in the development and delivery of the new BA (Hons) Professional Golf degree programme.

She said: This is an exciting, enterprising and innovative degree programme, not only for the University of the Highlands and Islands but also for Scotland. There is no other degree programme like it in Scotland and it gives an opportunity to aspiring golfers to reach their potential, both as a golfer and academically."

If you fancy a career in golf, then why not attend the golf degree launch and information event on Sunday 8 March, 8am-4.30pm at the Fairmont St Andrews and also enjoy a complimentary round of golf on the Torrance Course.

To book, see: http://bit.ly/1BhL9nM

For further information visit: www.uhi.ac.uk/golf