Zach Shallcross shocked some fans — as well as contestant Kat Izzo herself — when he eliminated her on the March 6, 2023, episode of The Bachelor.
“I definitely could reflect on where my feelings were at in that moment, and they were feeling off,” Kat admitted to Us Weekly. But she didn’t see the elimination coming at all. “We had one hard week,” Kat continued, “but we also had five good weeks. So I thought that was going to be something to show my family that like, ‘Yeah, sometimes we’re not perfect. Sometimes we struggle. But he’s wanting to love them through that.’ I was hoping that was going to be him. Unfortunately, it wasn’t.”
Previously a strong contender for Zach’s affections (Kat was the one who pulled Zach into the hallway for a quick makeout when he arrived to pick up Charity for their date), the Tampa native started unraveling when she was part of a group date in Budapest.
The four women and Zach attended a performance by Hungarian Magician/Mentalist Labib Malik (which was pretty amazing, by the way). He asked them questions about their relationship with Zach and was able to predict their answers before they even spoke. Apparently, the mentalist awakened insecurities in all four of the ladies, and as they left the theater, Kat was actually in tears.
High emotions continued into the evening portion of the group date, as the ladies moved to the after-party. Kat was still feeling very emotional and closed off, and she was terrified of telling Zach how she’d been feeling. But wanting to be open, Kat told Zach how she’d been struggling.
Zach admitted to being confused, especially when Kat said she’d even thought about leaving. Her uncertainty made him nervous, but she assured him that she had “decided to go through the storm.” He seemed relieved after their talk, and told Kat he felt better.
But to no avail. When the Rose Ceremony arrived, Kat didn’t get a rose. Her insecurity and doubts about their relationship gave him concern. Zach confessed that he no longer saw a “confident future” with her.
Kat admitted she thought Zach was “The One.” Oh, they all do, honey. You weren’t the only one imagining yourself as “Mrs. Shallcross.”
“Even up until the point that we left, I was like, ‘What? You’re supposed to be my husband,’” Kat confessed. “Even when I was wanting to give up because it was hard, I was like, ‘Nope, this is my person at the end of this.’ I would never give up on it.”
And Kat wasn’t the only one who thought she would still be standing at the end of Zach’s journey. “If I’m being honest, there was a time that I thought Kat was The One,” Jesse Palmer admitted. “Having talked to Zach [on and off camera], I really thought it was Kat at the end.”
Even thoughZach had a “strong relationship” with Kat “very early on,” his relationships with the other four women — Ariel [Frenkel], Charity [Lawson], Kaity [Biggar], and Gabi [Elnicki] were just stronger. They will be taking Zach home to meet their families next week on the Hometown dates.
“Nothing ever happened that was wrong,” Zach said, “but the other relationships . . . were just stronger and I couldn’t deny those.”
TELL US – WERE YOU SURPRISED TO SEE ZACH SEND KAT HOME? DID YOU AGREE WITH JESSE PALMER THAT SHE WAS ORIGINALLY A FRONTRUNNER?
[Photo Credit: ABC/Ricky Middlesworth]