Why Golden Bachelor's Kathy Swarts Will Only Date Divorced Men

Kathy Swarts has one golden rule when it comes to dating.

While speaking with cohost Susan Noles and guest star Nancy Hulkower on the Wednesday, May 1, episode of the “Bachelor Happy Hour: Golden Hour” podcast, Swarts, 70, revealed why she’ll never date a man who’s never been married.

“I’ve dated a few men that have never been married and honestly, I won’t do that again,” the Golden Bachelor alum stated. “[They’re] incredibly selfish, because it’s always been about them. But not having children, you never know, there might be a reason they didn’t have children if they were married. So that doesn’t bother me as much. But I won’t [date someone who hasn’t been married].”

Though she has a prerequisite for a potential romantic partner, that doesn’t mean Swarts doesn’t entertain some of the suitors that try to get her attention.

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During an appearance on Jana Kramer‘s “Whine Down” podcast in December 2023, the reality personality opened up about some of the people who have slid into her DMs since appearing on The Golden Bachelor.

“I’ve had four, and one was a 32-year-old, very good-looking dude. And I did have to point out to him that I have children older than he is,” joked Swarts, who has three children and two grandchildren. “Then I had a 40-year-old baseball player, same note as the first guy. And then I had a daughter reach out on behalf of her dad.”

And while she appreciated the matchmaking daughter, she revealed that she “never heard” from her father. She did, however, receive a flattering compliment from a man “in his late 50s” who reached out to a mutual friend about her.

“He said, ‘She’s so pretty, she might be too young for me,’” she recalled, noting that she’s going to borrow the sentiment as a future pickup line: “You’re too young for me, but, OK, let’s try it.”

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Bachelor Nation fans met Swarts on season 1 of The Golden Bachelor, starring Gerry Turner. Though she was eliminated during week four, she sparked some drama with eventual winner Theresa Nist, 70, during her time on the dating show after she accused Nist of bragging about her connection with Turner, 72.

“I feel like you’re dismissing me, like, ‘He and I are going off into the sunset. Go pack because you’re going home.’ That’s how you’ve made me feel sometimes,” she said to Nist, who began to cry. “When you say things like, ‘[We] have a huge connection,’ I think that’s the kind of stuff that sounds possessive, territorial, and [like], ‘Get the hell out of my way, he’s mine.’” That’s not a pretty picture, Theresa.”

After the episode aired, Nist reflected on the moment via Instagram, writing that she never thought she “was going to find myself involved in drama.”

She added, “That is so not who I am. I just thought that I was able to be open and honest with a new friend about how I was feeling.”

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Turner went on to propose to Nist in the finale, and the two tied the knot in a televised ceremony in January; however, the couple announced their split just three months later.

“Theresa and I have had a number of heart-to-heart conversations and we’ve looked closely at our situation — our living situation — and we’ve kind of come to the conclusion mutually that it’s time for us to dissolve our marriage,” Gerry said on Good Morning America in April, adding that it’s “best for the happiness of each of us to live apart” and be near their families.