Golden Bachelor Mel Owens Admits He’s in ‘Difficult Situation’ As Controversial Season Comes to an End

Mel Owens seemingly has not found it easy to pick which woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with.

In an article published Tuesday, November 11, Us Weekly shared an exclusive clip from the upcoming finale episode of The Golden Bachelor. The footage features the retired athlete, 66 — who is down to two women: Peg Munson or Cindy Angelcyk Cullers — having a serious conversation with Cullers, 60, on their one-on-one date.

“I love spending time with you. I love being with you. You’re sharing, caring, smart, but it’s a difficult situation,” Owens candidly told Cullers before admitting, “I am torn between you and Peg.”

“It’s definitely hard for me because I’ve wrestled with trying not to shut down, you know, just to still remain present, to still remain open and vulnerable,” Cullers responded.

Owens called Cullers “a brave soul for sticking through” this process, noting, “It’s hard to find a partner, but it could happen here, right?”

Spoilers ahead, because as Star previously reported, Owens does not end up with Cullers — rather, he reportedly gets engaged to Munson, 62, in the finale episode, per The U.S. Sun.

A production source told the outlet that Owens “was more difficult in the beginning which is why everyone had doubts but he really did allow himself to be vulnerable to the process.”

“And because of that, he had a storybook ending, and producers are elated with the outcome,” the source added.

Owens has been plagued by controversy since before his season even started airing, as he faced criticism for a comment he made saying he only wanted to date women between the ages of 45 and 60, and hoped to stay away from “the artificial hips and the wigs” on the In The Trenches podcast.

Catch the Golden Bachelor finale on Wednesday, November 12, at 8 pm ET on ABC.