Indiana's Golden Bachelor finds love. Here's who he picked and what's next.

"The Golden Bachelor" star Gerry Turner has found his person. But his ride on network TV isn’t over.

On the live season finale of the hit ABC reality dating show, America finally saw the 72-year-old widower choose between the final two women eager to spend their lives with him — Theresa Nist, a 70-year-old securities professional from Shrewsbury, New Jersey, and Leslie Fhima, 64, a fitness instructor from Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Turner and his wife, Toni, were married for more than 40 years when she died of an infection in 2017, shortly after they moved to their dream home in Hudson, Indiana.

He chose Theresa. And they’re getting married.

The winning contestant and Turner had a similar love story.

Nist was married for 42 years to her high school sweetheart, William “Bill” Nist, who died in 2014. They met when she was 14 and he was 16, she revealed in an Instagram post.

During the show, Turner described Nist as “a woman who knew how to maintain a relationship.”

He was shown proposing on bended knee, with a Neil Lane ring and a golden rose in Costa Rica.

Turner and Nist will get married Jan. 4, 2024, live on ABC.

The two-hour finale episode of 'The Golden Bachelor' was heated.

Fhima grilled Turner about leading her to believe she’d be his choice after he broke the news of his decision to her during a private meeting.

Several of the eliminated ladies from the show shook their heads as Turner apologized before the live studio audience.

The finale came amid allegations that Gerry Turner was a jerk.

The Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday released a story anonymously quoting a woman who said she was in a long-term relationship with Turner and painted him as a cad.

The woman told the publication that she and Turner began dating within weeks of his wife’s death; and, at his behest, she quit her job and moved to his home in Indiana, where he insisted they split expenses, derided her for gaining weight and forced her out of the home on short notice after the resulting 2019 breakup.

In promoting the show, Turner had presented as having limited dating experience since the death of his wife.

When Turner visited the IndyStar in November, he responded to critics saying he was overexposed and a little too smooth for a 70-something who had been out of the dating scene.

“Ha! Let me talk to that guy,” he said. “Too smooth? This is all I got. I can’t be smooth.”

"The Bachelor" weddings are uncommon.

In 27 seasons of "The Bachelor," only one lead has married a winning contestant. Two others married the runners-up from their seasons. Zach Shallcross from Season 27, which ended in March, remains engaged to that season's winner, Kaity Biggar.

Meanwhile,  spinoff "The Bachelorette"  has resulted in five marriages over 20 seasons; with a sixth in the works as recent lead Charity Lawson and her selected suitor, Dotun Olubeko got engaged on the show.

And the "Bachelor in Paradise," which brings together former contestants from multiple seasons of both shows at tropical locales, has produced 10 marriages over nine seasons.

A second season is in the works.

ABC encouraged folks to apply at abc.com/casting  for the next season of “The Golden Bachelor.” There’s no word yet on a potential female-led spinoff.

Look for another Hoosier on 'The Bachelor.'

We’ll see at least one more Hoosier on the upcoming “The Bachelor” season.  Nancy Hulkower, a native of Warsaw, Indiana, who was part of the “The Golden Bachelor” cast, was seen in a preview giving advice to lead Joey Graziadei. That season starts in January.

How to watch the Golden Bachelor wedding

"The Golden Wedding" airs live at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 4, on ABC. It will be streaming on Hulu the next day.

Contact IndyStar reporter Cheryl V. Jackson at cheryl.jackson@indystar.com or 317-444-6264. Follow her on X.com: @cherylvjackson.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Get ready for the Golden Bachelor wedding: Gerry Turner to marry Theresa