ABC's first 'Golden Bachelor' star is a 71-year-old retiree from Indiana

The first seasoned, hopeless romantic in ABC’s newest iteration of "The Bachelor" is a Hoosier.

The network on Monday revealed that 71-year-old Indiana resident Gerry Turner will be handing out roses on “The Golden Bachelor,” looking to find love amongst the senior set.

Turner lives in his dream house on a lake in Indiana and is “often busy hosting barbecues, playing pickleball, cheering on his favorite Chicago sports teams, four-wheeling and spending time with friends and family at restaurants and local haunts, according to the network.

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Turner, a retired restaurateur, is the father of two adult daughters and the grandfather of two girls.

He married his high school sweetheart, Toni, in 1974 and they were together for 43 years until she died in 2017.

As with the OG “The Bachelor,” Turner will try to pair with one of the women living in a mansion. The women from which he’ll be choosing are more mature in age than the 20- and 30-somethings that have made up the casts of the original program.

In 27 seasons of "The Bachelor" series, only Season 17's Sean Lowe actually tied the knot with a winning contestant. He married Catherine Giudici on Jan. 26, 2014. They have three children together.

Zach Shallcross from Season 27, which ended in March, remains engaged to that season's winner, Kaity Biggar. Season 13's Jason Mesnick married his season's runner-up, Molly Malaney, in 2010; and Arie Luyendyk Jr. from Season 22 also married his season's runner-up, Lauren Burnham, in 2019.

"The Bachelorette," which started its 20th season last month, has resulted in five marriages.

"The Golden Bachelor" will debut this fall.

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This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: ABC's 'The Golden Bachelor' names Indiana resident as its first star