Hank Haney appeared on my golf talk radio show (The Scorecard, WSCR-AM 670 in Chicago) a few weeks ago. Towards the end of the interview, we asked him what celebrity was coming up for the next edition of the Haney Project on the Golf Channel.

“We’ve got a good one,” Haney said. “It’ll be announced soon.”

We pressed Haney, but he wouldn’t reveal the identity.

“People will be talking about it,” he said.

Turns out Haney wasn’t exaggerating. The Golf Channel announced that Michael Phelps is leaving the swimming pool for the course to work with Haney.

From the release.

The Haney Project will chronicle Phelps’ attempts to improve his game from tee-to-green with the guidance of Tiger Woods’ former swing coach when the hit original series returns for a fifth season on Golf Channel – television’s fastest-growing network among those servicing more than 80 million homes – in February 2013. The announcement was made today by Phelps and Mike McCarley, President, Golf Channel.

“I have traveled the world through swimming, but really haven’t had an opportunity to experience the world through my travels,” said Phelps. “As I enter this next chapter of my life, I think I will be able to shift my competitiveness to anything I put my mind to and golf is one of the things I want to focus on. If I have a goal of dropping a certain amount of shots, or working on my short game or putting, those things are going to keep me motivated and fire me up and keep me excited. I want to play all the world’s great golf courses, but I’d like to play them well. I’m excited about this project with Golf Channel and I’m looking forward to working with Hank and see what we can do together on the golf course.”

Phelps figures to be the show’s best subject since the weird golf swing of Charles Barkley was dissected in season 1.

Phelps still will be on an Olympic high, and people will want to see him any way they can. They might even enjoy seeing him get humbled by the ultimate humbling sport.

Said Golf Channel president Mike McCarley:

“We look forward to chronicling Michael’s transition from the most-decorated Olympian in history to a frustrated golfer trying to enjoy playing the world’s greatest golf courses,” McCarley said. “Golfers everywhere will be able to relate to his quest to improve his game.”