A supportive ex. Ben Higgins has no hard feelings over his former fiancée Lauren Bushnell’s marriage to Chris Lane.
“I don’t know if my place is to congratulate my ex-fiancée on her new marriage, but from a distance I definitely did,” Higgins, 30, told Us Weekly exclusively on Wednesday, October 30, while speaking about participating in LPGA Tour’s Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions. “I’m ecstatic that both of us have been able to move on in such a way that is making us both better people. I know she is obviously a married woman now. She is with Chris and I am with Jessica [Clarke].”
Higgins added, “I wish them nothing but the best. But no, I have not reached out to her to wish her anything. I think that might be a little weird.”
The Indiana native revealed that he has “been a fan of” Lane’s music. He even recalled a time where he found himself listening to the 34-year-old country crooner’s hit “Big, Big, Plans” — a track that details Lane’s intentions to start a life with Bushnell, 29.
“The other day, I had my country radio station on in Denver, and my first preset is set to iHeartRadio’s The Bull and second one’s some other country radio station,” Higgins began.“I turned on The Bull, and his music was playing. I was like, ‘You know what? I don’t hate this song! It’s a fine song, but I don’t want to listen to it.’”
The Bachelor alum said that when he “switched” to the other radio station, Lane’s love song was playing on there as well. “I couldn’t get away from it, so I just sat through it, listening, because I figured that’s what I was supposed to do at that point,” he added.
Higgins and Bushnell met on The Bachelor’s 20th season, which premiered in 2016. The former couple were engaged by the season’s end, but announced their separation in May 2017. Bushnell later wed Lane on October 25, and Higgins is currently dating Jessica Clarke.
“Good for them! At this point, it’s not even weird,” Higgins told Us on Wednesday. “I can listen to songs about them doing whatever. I’m just happy for them.”
Higgins’ involvement in the Bachelor franchise has afforded him the opportunity to participate in many rewarding opportunities, including LPGA Tour’s Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions. The event, which started about five years ago, features professional golfers as they play alongside other athletes and celebrities — and Higgins is among the high-profile participants for the 2020 affair.
Mike Flaskey, CEO of Diamond Resorts and the founder of the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champion, told Us that Higgins “brings a demographic to the table that’s really important.” The televised event’s “core focus” is to raise money for children’s health care, Flaskey said.
“While you see entertainment at the highest level and you see professional golf at the highest level, at the end of the day, it’s all about raising money for sick children,” Flaskey told Us. “That is something that resonates with everybody no matter what your political affiliation is, no matter where you’re from, everybody is interested in trying to figure out how to help sick children.”
Higgins revealed to Us that before being recruited for the annual golf tournament, he completed a questionnaire for The Bachelor about his post-show goals. He wrote that he wanted to play in celebrity golf tournaments. “I’ve watched the Diamond Resorts on TV for years and now to be able to be apart of it, it really is a dream of mine,” Higgins said.
The LPGA Tour’s season-opening event hits the Four Seasons Golf and Sports Club in Orlando, Florida, between January 16 – 19, 2020. Tickets are now available for purchase.
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