Yes, Matt James' mom is a contestant on The Golden Bachelor

The rumors are true, rose lovers: Matt James' mom, Patty, is one of the 22 senior women starring on The Golden Bachelor.

Season 25 Bachelor Matt has been dodging questions for weeks about whether his 70-year-old mother — a retired real estate professional from Durham, NC — would be one of the women dating Gerry Turner on ABC's senior citizen spin-off of The Bachelor. Now that EW has exclusively revealed the full Golden Bachelor cast, we can confirm Patty's participation.

ABC/Ricky Middlesworth Patty, 70

Looking good, mama!

Viewers first met Patty in 2021, when Matt sat down with her on his Bachelor season premiere. "My mom raised us in a Christian household," recalled Matt, whose parents split up when he was a baby. "That foundation was everything for me. I've seen all the sacrifices that my mom has made in my life. She put aside everything so that I would have the opportunity to be the man that she knew I was capable of being."

But now that Matt and his younger brother, John, are all grown up, it's Patty's turn. "I'm looking for someone that cares about family like I do," she says in the new Golden Bachelor promo. Perhaps that someone will be 72-year-old Golden star Gerry Turner, who ABC describes as a "doting father and grandfather" to daughters Angie and Jenny, and granddaughters, Charlee and Payton.

Matt James/Instagram Rachael Kirkconnell, Matt James, and Patty James

And who knows? If it works out, maybe Matt and season 25 "winner" Rachael Kirkconnell can have a double wedding with Patty and Gerry.

The Golden Bachelor premieres Thursday, Sept. 28 on ABC.

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