The Bachelor’s Back: Brad Womack Returns to Redeem Himself

By Addie Strong
January 11, 2011

Bachelor Brad Womack Ahh. The beginning of 2011: full of fresh starts, promising new beginnings and a brand-new season of “The Bachelor” on ABC. Well, sort of …

See, the 15th season of “The Bachelor,” now two episodes in, may take you back a few years—specifically, to 2007, when handsome Southern bar owner Brad Womack was anointed the latest star of “The Bachelor” tv show.

Brad Womack, the blue-eyed charmer with his washboard abs won over female viewers throughout the 11th season … until the “Final Rose Ceremony.” Brad Womack shocked audiences when he rejected not just one, but both of his top two ladies, DeAnna Pappas and Jenni Croft. That’s when Brad went from the most eligible bachelor in America to the most hated man in the world.

Of course, it all worked out spectacularly for ABC and “The Bachelor” series. Rejected DeAnna Pappas went on to star on the following season of “The Bachelorette.” When she dumped Jason Mesnick, he became the next “Bachelor.” Then Jason Mesnick ditched Jillian Harris, who was hired as the next “Bachelorette.” Jillian Harris’s leftover, Jake Pavelka, scored the “Bachelor” gig soon thereafter, and when one of his favorite gals, Ali Fedotowsky, chose work over love and left Jake behind. She secured her spot on the latest season of ABC's “The Bachelorette.”   Ali’s runner-up, Chris Lambton, became a fan favorite thanks to his gentlemanly, quietly romantic and loyal ways. But it seems it was those traits that led him to turn down ABC’s offer to become the next “Bachelor.” With producers left in the lurch, they followed their trail of boys and babes all the way back to where the past few years all began: to Brad Womack.

Images from The Bachelor, Starring Brad Womack

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Full Cast
Photo Credit: all images provided by ABC
Brad with Madison
Brad with Emily
Rose Ceremony

Three years after his infamous "Bachelor" season finale, Brad Womack says that intensive therapy has helped him overcome commitment phobia and that he’s ready to find love again. In fact, Brad is virtually guaranteeing viewers a very different ending to his love story this time around. “I can promise you there is a very happy ending,” he told USA Today. “I did find somebody, I did fall in love.”
Want to know who’s vying for the Bachelor's final rose this time around? Keep your eye on the following ladies who are looking to steal Brad’s heart:

• Madison: The girl with the fangs. Seriously, the 25-year-old is a member of the New York Underground Vampire Club. Is she in it for love, or for blood?

• Chantal: Daughter of former Seattle Seahawks football player Mike O’Brien, she’s the one who slapped Brad when they meet for the first time. Risky play.

• Ashley H.: Looks like this 26-year-old dentist may be the drama queen of the bunch. She's prone to throwing tantrums, especially during group dates.

• Ashley S.: The recipient of the First Impression Rose. And we all know what happened to last season’s First Impression winner, Roberto Martinez: He’s engaged to Ali Fedotowsky. Will the same good fortune be bestowed upon this bachelorette?

• Emily: Has a five-year-old daughter from her previous relationship with NASCAR’s Ricky Hendrick. Hendrick was killed in a plane crash in 2004; a few days later, Emily learned she was pregnant with their daughter, who she later named Ricki.

• Shawntel: Perhaps the most surprising career of any Bachelorette ever: She’s a funeral director and embalmer at her family’s funeral home.

"The Bachelor" on "E News" (via YouTube)

ABC is constantly on the lookout for future “Bachelor” and “Bachelorette” cast members. While you’re sending in your application, check out these rose ceremony-worthy gowns, shoes and jewels; they're perfect for tossing in a suitcase when you get that casting call for "The Bachelor!"

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