Patty James’ time in Bachelor Nation was short-lived as former Bachelor Matt James’ mom was sent home on the series premiere of The Golden Bachelor.
“It wasn’t meant to be,” Patty, 70, captioned a pic of herself from night 1 of the show via Instagram on Friday, September 29. “God has [a] plan for me (and you ❤️)✨💫.”
Several fans showed their support for the retired real estate professional in the post’s comments, with one user writing, “You looked absolutely stunning! Your plan will unfold how it’s supposed to!” Another person suggested she be cast as the first Golden Bachelorette, stating, “Next PLATINUM Bachelorette!!! Right everyone????❤️”
Patty was one of six contestants eliminated by Gerry Turner during the Thursday, September 28, premiere. “I want you to know how grateful I am that you’re all here and you’ve started this journey with me. I also know that this is working because tonight, I felt connections with a number of you,” Gerry, 72, said at the beginning of his first rose ceremony.
He continued: “Unfortunately, this is something that I have dreaded doing for many months. It’s difficult to look at women as wonderful as you and know that not all of you will be here tomorrow.”
Matt, 31, and his girlfriend, Rachael Kirkconnell, joined Patty to watch the series premiere, surprising her with a bunch of sweet treats. “It’s not a surprise visit, unless you come bearing gifts 🍰🧁🌹,” Matt captioned an Instagram video from his mom’s special night on Thursday. “Rach and I flew in-town to surprise mom with @nothingbundtcakes and shower her with love tonight for the premiere ❤️.”
He went on to write, “We love you, we’re so proud of you and I hope you find what you came for, we can’t wait to watch with you 🍴🍰.” Patty, for her part, called the visit “the best surprise” in the post’s comments.
Just like many Bachelor Nation fans, Matt’s BFF Tyler Cameron was excited to watch Patty find a second chance at love on The Golden Bachelor. “Patty’s my dark horse,” Cameron, 30, said on an episode of Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen earlier this month. “I think she’s going to go far in it.”
Having gotten to know Patty as a close friend of Matt’s, Cameron joked that she “might be a little too much for Gerry to handle,” adding, “Hopefully he’s got his pacemaker in, he’ll be alright.”
Gerry, for his part, hinted to Us Weekly that he found love on the show – and used the L-word.
“In retrospect, I realized that in that particular moment, whenever it was — the setting was such that, ‘Yeah, it was easy to look at someone and tell ’em that you loved ’em.’ But once you get through it all and you look back, then you realize that there is just really one person that really meets the standard in all situations that you want it to be,” Gerry told Us.
New episodes of The Golden Bachelor air on ABC Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET, followed by new episodes of Bachelor in Paradise at 9 p.m. ET.
