Top 10 Bachelor Contestants That Should've Won
#10: Becca Tilley
“The Bachelor” (2002-)
It was difficult to watch Becca Tilley slowly realize that maybe Bachelor Chris Soules wasn’t what she wanted. Becca competed on Season 19 of “The Bachelor,” and quickly became a fan favorite. She made it all the way to the finals, leaving Chris to choose between her and eventual winner, Whitney Bischoff. Throughout the season, it seemed like Chris was a bit more into Becca than she was into him. Things ended up not working out because Becca didn’t seem ready to move to Iowa, although Chris much later said that he probably would have chosen her if she had been. Seems things certainly have worked out for Becca, though – she announced in 2022 that she’s been dating singer Hayley Kiyoko for years.
#9: Andrew Spencer
“The Bachelorette” (2003-)
From the moment Andrew Spencer stepped out of the limo on Bachelorette Katie Thurston’s season, there was no doubt in our minds he would go far. Just look at that smile! Katie and Andrew seemed to vibe right from the beginning, and he made it all the way to week seven before getting eliminated. But before he went home, Andrew had one last surprise for Katie. He left a note on her doorstep telling her that if she changed her mind, he would be around. Katie proceeded to literally run after this man before asking him if he would like to stay. Ultimately, Andrew decided it was too late, but if you’ve got the Bachelorette chasing after you? Yeah, maybe you should have won.
#8: Madison Prewett
“The Bachelor” (2002-)
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One of many switcheroos to come! Madison Prewett competed on Season 24 of “The Bachelor,” vying for Peter “Pilot Pete” Weber’s heart. She made it all the way to fantasy suite week, but that’s when things started to get… difficult. Madison told Peter that she would not say yes to his marriage proposal if it turned out that he had slept with other women on the show. Of course, he had, which threw a wrench into their relationship. Peter ended up choosing Hannah Ann Sluss, but it was pretty clear all along he wanted to choose Madison. Or, maybe he really wanted to choose Kelley Flanagan, who he started dating after the show aired. Honestly, sounds like Pete had a lot to sort out.
#7: Tayshia Adams
“The Bachelor” (2002-)
Barring the fence jump (iconic!), we’d rather forget about Colton Underwood’s season of “The Bachelor” altogether. But, we have to admit, it did give us some incredible contestants: Tayshia Adams, for one. When Cassie Randolph self-eliminated from the show, Colton realized that he didn’t want to keep stringing along the other two women who were left. When he broke up with Tayshia, he had such a hard time getting through it that she ended up being the one to try and make HIM feel better! Honestly, we didn’t actually want Tayshia to end up with Colton – being the Bachelorette is a much better deal – but we just think she deserved better than this.
#6: Hannah Godwin
“The Bachelor” (2002-)
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Speaking of Tayshia and Colton, let’s check in with the other point of that triangle, shall we? Hannah Godwin seemed tailor-made to win “The Bachelor” – seriously, it feels almost like she stepped out of a lab or something. Unfortunately, however, it just wasn’t meant to be. She ended up facing the same fate as Tayshia – dumped so Colton could try to figure things out with Cassie. Although Hannah G. didn’t get the opportunity to win, let’s not feel too bad for her. She ended up finding love on “Bachelor in Paradise” with Dylan Barbour, and the two are engaged as of 2022.
#5: Blake Horstmann
“The Bachelorette” (2003-)
If only Blake had actually won this show, maybe things wouldn’t have gone so poorly for him later on. Blake Hortsmann competed on Becca Kufrin’s season of “The Bachelorette,” and immediately made an impression. He was cute, he was funny, and he almost made it all the way. Unfortunately, as he was delivering a beautiful, heartfelt proposal to Becca in the season finale – she told him it was a no-go. Unfortunately for Becca, her relationship with winner Garrett Yrigoyen didn’t last and was marred by controversy. Maybe Becca would have been better off with Blake – and maybe Blake wouldn’t have hooked up so often at Stagecoach.
#4: Trista Rehn
“The Bachelor” (2002-)
It’s time to celebrate an OG. Back when “The Bachelor” premiered in 2002, it wasn’t quite the reality television juggernaut it is now. Many fans probably don’t remember the names of a lot of those early contestants or leads. But if there’s one you do remember, it’s probably Trista. She competed on the first ever season of the show, vying for Bachelor Alex Michel’s heart. She was clearly the most beloved, interesting, and funny contestant that season, but unfortunately, that wasn’t enough to win over Alex. Lucky for Trista —now Trista Sutter — she went on to become the first Bachelorette, and is still with her ring-winner. That’s more than we can say for Alex.
#3: Tyler Cameron
“The Bachelorette” (2002-)
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If there was ever a bonehead moment on “The Bachelorette,” not choosing this guy was it. Tyler Cameron has become one of the most popular figures in Bachelor Nation, and got his start in the franchise on Bachelorette Hannah Brown’s season. Tyler proved himself to Hannah – and fans – early on as not only a certified hottie, but a pretty great guy as well. He made it all the way to proposals, but Hannah ended up going with Jed Wyatt – and we all know how that turned out. But the story of Hannah and Tyler wasn’t over yet. During “After the Final Rose,” she asked him out on a date. Girl, you could have just picked him the first time.
#2: Molly Malaney
“The Bachelor” (2002-)
It’s kinda amazing how often Bachelors and Bachelorettes don’t always make the right decision the first time around. We saw this with Pilot Pete previously on this list, and we also saw it with Arie Luyendyk Jr. If Arie picked Lauren Burnham the first time around, it could have saved everyone a lot of heartache. But the original, and most infamous poor decision goes to Season 13 Bachelor Jason Mesnick. Jason originally proposed to Melissa Rycroft, but during “After the Final Rose,” he revealed that he still had feelings for Molly Malaney. Molly and Jason are now married and she goes by Molly Mesnick, but we just wish these people would pick right the first time.
Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
Mike Johnson, “The Bachelorette” (2003-)
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JoJo Fletcher, “The Bachelor” (2002-)
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#1: Tenley Molzahn
“The Bachelor” (2002-)
From the beginning of Bachelor Jake Pavelka’s season, Tenley Molzahn seemed poised to win. She received the first impression rose on night one, and she and Jake seemed to have great chemistry. But – despite receiving a pretty heavy villain edit – another contestant, Vienna Girardi ended up winning Jake’s heart. Tenley, with her sweet and kind nature, was utterly devastated. Later on, Jake and Vienna split in a highly publicized and highly contentious break-up, proving maybe they weren’t so right for each other after all. Tenley went on to appear on other Bachelor shows and is now married and took her husband’s last name, Leopold.
