‘The Golden Bachelorette’ Episode 5 Recap: Who Went Home? And Who’s Headed To Hometown Week?

The Golden Bachelorette is only five episodes deep, but Hometown Week is already on the horizon.

With only four roses to hand out, Joan Vassos kicked off the week with some major decisions to make and seven remaining guys: Chock , Guy , Jonathan , Jordan , Keith , Mark , and Pascal .

For the final group date of the season, our Golden Gal took five guys bowling and we got our first real glimpse at some heated competition between Golden Bachelorette contestants. Joan also took two special guys on make-it-or-break-it one-on-one dates before saying goodbye to someone before the rose ceremony.

In a break from tradition, Joan requested no roses during the week in hopes that she could spend as much time with each guy before she decided whose families to meet. With no one-on-one or group date stems handed out, the guys felt an added layer of pressure and uncertainty heading into the rose ceremony — especially since they had no clue how many men would move on.

In the end, Joan had several emotional farewells, tears were shed, and hugs were given. Ultimately, she’s content with her Final Four, and next week, she’ll travel the country to meet the children, grandchildren, pets, and loved ones of her potential partners. (Sidenote: We’re thankful we’re getting out of the mansion, because it’s WAY too quiet in there with only seven dudes.)

Curious who got a one-on-one date with Joan? How The Golden Bachelorette ‘s final group date of the season went? Who went home during The Golden Bachelorette Episode 5? And who’s headed to Hometown Week? We’ve got answers.

Before Joan embarked on her toughest week yet, she met with the OG Season 1 Bachelorette lead Trista Sutter for advice. Knowing she had to make the most of the time with her remaining men, Joan’s first Week 5 one-on-one went to her first impression rose winner, Keith Gordon. Their spark started strong, but in the weeks since they met outside the mansion, even Keith admitted their connection had dulled. Last week, he tried to impress Joan with a romantic beach setup in front of the mansion as a nod to their Night 1 chats, but he got in his head, wasn’t acting like himself, and feared their relationship was stalling out.

‘The Golden Bachelorette’s Joan Vassos Says Goodbye To Kelsey’s Dad Mark Anderson: “An Amazing Man… He Is That Exact Person”

Joan said Keith initially reminded her of her late husband John with his big personality, and while she loves his fun side, she wanted to make sure he had “a little more depth” ahead of Hometowns. They took their first helicopter ride to Babcock Winery, where owners Bryan and Lisa guided them on a wine tasting adventure. Everything was going smoothly until the couple revealed they’d been married for 32 years, which is how long Joan and John were married. Joan got emotional looking back on her marriage, and though John’s memory continued to weigh heavily on her mind, she actively tried to be more present as the week — and even the day — progressed.

When Joan and Keith got some alone time together, he set out to show her another side of himself by opening up about his ex-wife who struggled with addiction. Keith explained he had to separate his three daughters from the situation and raised them alone. He said they hadn’t spoken to his ex in around 10 years and admitted he often uses humor to mask vulnerability. Joan was comforted by his honesty and depth, and though the two talked about a potential Hometown Date, it was hard to know where they stood compared to other relationships.

Like Joan, Kelsey Anderson’s dad Mark lost his spouse to cancer. He thought about his late wife Denise a lot since embarking on his Golden Bachelorette journey, and ahead of Hometown Week, the early frontrunner was the only man who hadn’t had a one-on-one date. As Mark started to get in his head and wonder if he was supposed to be on the journey, he saw the sign he needed to carry on.

“I feel a connection to Joan, but I’m losing hope and I’ve looked really hard trying to find [a sign that] I’m doing the right thing and I’m not getting it,” Mark told cameras. Just then, as he sadly wandered around the mansion doing some soul searching, he saw a hummingbird that reminded him of Denise.

Those who watched Kelsey’s season of The Bachelor will recall butterflies served as a comforting reminder of her mom for her. For Mark, it was hummingbirds. Why? He told his pals Pascal and Jordan all about it in an emotional chat. “Throughout this whole thing I’ve had this feeling like, ‘Am I doing the right thing?'” Mark said tearfully. “So Denise — we had a hummingbird feeder and she would sit with her hand open. I’ve never seen someone just holding their hand out for a hummingbird. It would just sit in her hand…I believe there’s signs in the universe that kind of help guide you. So when I’m out here walking I stopped in my tracks. This hummingbird comes up and I tried to catch my breath, because it’s like she’s there and she’s saying this is right.”

Before Keith returned from his one-on-one, Mark said the sheer sight of that hummingbird took “tons” off his shoulders and he was manifesting a solo date with Joan. “The darkness is going away and this is becoming brighter and brighter and brighter, and now I’m opening that door to allow someone to come in. It feels good.”

Guy Gansert Becomes Second ‘Golden Bachelorette’ Contestant To Have Order Of Protection Filed Against Him

Just like that, the final group date card of the season arrived. Joan invited Guy, Jordan, Jonathan, Pascal, and Chock bowling. And yes, much to Pascal’s dismay, he had to slip into poor-quality bowling attire. The low-key date featured beer, snacks, strikes, and even some contestant drama. Why? Because frontrunner Chock Chapple started getting a bit greedy about his time with Joan.

As the guys put it, Chock was “glued to” Joan during the game and “didn’t give anyone the chance to get to know her.” He asked intimate questions like “Which side of the bed?” and “Can I just take you home?” within earshot of his pal, and Jonathan sensed “competition in the air.” Guy, still riding his one-on-one date high, was most bothered by Chock’s forwardness, and even tried to steal his seat while he went to bowl. Ultimately, Chock stayed unbothered and told cameras, “I’m crazy about her and I want to be with her every moment. I don’t care what they’re thinking or doing. I’m just worried about Joan and myself.”

Despite Chock being by her side for most of the group date, Joan did get a chance to check in with the others. Jonathan showed her photos of his family members (and himself with an afro!), Pascal assured her he loves children and wants her to meet his, and Guy said he hasn’t been this happy in years. Before Joan left she told the guys she loves every one of them, and admitted she can see herself falling in love with more than one person.

Mark’s one-on-one manifestation worked, and for the final date ahead of Hometown Week, he and Joan bonded on a yacht. While the date started off a little awkward — or so the edit led us to believe — once the captain introduced a scavenger hunt courtesy of Jesse Palmer, Joan and Mark had fun hunting for clues, playing games, and opening up TO each other.

“Sometimes I’m a little slow getting started,” Mark admitted, making me wish he got a one-on-one date earlier in the season so he had time to build his confidence. The hot dad lasted so long without one-on-one time because Joan already knew his family ruled and he was kind and handsome. Going into the date, she wanted to make sure he could let down his guard, open up, have fun, and ignite a spark strong enough for her to see a future with him. Sadly, the two fell back into talking about the past.

Mark said the Golden Bachelorette journey helped him process so much about his wife’s death. He told Joan the hummingbird story, shared more about Denise, and asked her about her own loss. By the end of the date, the two were comforting each other on a deeper level, but Joan told cameras she still felt there was “something missing.”

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The day of the rose ceremony, Mark was on Cloud Nine and Chock was shaking in his sandals because he was so confident the Golden Bachelor dad would get a Hometown Date rose. Just then, Joan made a surprise visit to the mansion and pulled Mark aside To Talk. Uh oh…

“First I just want to say I had a great date yesterday. And I felt like our relationship grew a lot. We had important conversations, and I love to hear about how your personal journey — how healing it’s been being in the house with these people who were freely sharing their emotions with you,” Joan began. “And then you did the nicest thing for me, and you talked about Denise coming to visit you here at the house as a hummingbird… I felt like we bonded in such an important way. You made me feel so comfortable and so supported, and you’re such an amazing man, and and all these things made me want us to be really good. But I went home last night, and I kept thinking, ‘What’s missing? Something doesn’t feel right.'”

Joan told Mark she felt they were at two different stages of their journeys, explaining, “I feel like you’ve grown so much personally and that your heart is mending, but I didn’t see me in our conversations while we were talking, and I didn’t feel like I imagined in us… I just came into this a little too early for you, and I didn’t want to go into a rose ceremony when there are Hometowns at stake and not have a conversation with you first to say that I need somebody who is as far along in their journey as I am.”

Mark was understandably disappointed, but he said the experience changed him and he’s leaving the show “a better human being, a better man, and a better father.” If the breakup didn’t make you cry, Mark going inside to tell the guys sure as hell will! After he told his bros “I know that she’s accompanied by the most fantastic men for her to continue on with,” the guys started crying, hugging Mark, and telling them how much they loved him. Pascal even told the cameras, “I’m very sad. He was my best friend…I didn’t expect it and I hope he’s OK.” Does anyone have a Prada handkerchief I can sob into?!

After Mark packed his suitcase and headed out, the next time we saw Joan and her Golden Guys was at the rose ceremony. So who went home in The Golden Bachelorette Episode 5? And who’s moving on to Hometown Week to introduce Joan to their families?

Who Went Home On The Golden Bachelorette Episode 5?

• Mark, 57, an Army veteran from Leesville, La.
• Keith, 62, a girl dad from San Jose, Calif.
• Jonathan, 61, a shipping consultant from Oakland, Iowa (Joan walked him out for an extra-special goodbye and one final heart-to-heart.)

Who’s Going To Hometown Week On The Golden Bachelorette ?

• Chock, 60, an insurance executive from Wichita, Kan.
• Guy, 66, an ER doctor from Reno, Nev.
• Jordan, 61, a sales executive from Chicago, Ill.
• Pascal, 69, a salon owner from Chicago, Ill.

Next up? Hometown Week! See you back here next Wednesday for another eventful Golden Bachelorette recap.

New episodes of The Golden Bachelorette premiere Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. on ABC with next-day streaming on Hulu.

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