Ben Flajnik

Ben Flajnik sent fan favorite Kacie Boguskie packing on Monday's hometown dates episode of The Bachelor, the third-to-last installment of the ABC show's season.

In a surprise, Courtney Robertson, Nicki Sterling and Lindzi Cox all moved on (see The Bachelor spoilers for scoop on the next two weeks) while Kacie was left in tears.

In his weekly blog on People, Ben reflects on his travels to Clarksville, Tenn., Kacie's hometown, and the turning point when the romance began to go downhill fast.

The Bachelor: Week 8 Rose Ceremony, Week 9 Promo

"The day portion of our date went swimmingly as usual, but as Kacie started to talk about her dad, I got nervous," Ben writes. "I started to think he wouldn't approve of me being so different than a man he would normally want his daughter to date."

"The evening was difficult for me. Kacie's family was really nice and welcoming, but every time I had a conversation with one of her family members, I felt like I was disappointing them. Kacie was raised with more traditional values than I was."

"I felt like that would get between us in regards to her family. I thought about it so much that it started getting in the way of my feelings growing stronger for her."

There are few guarantees in life, but on The Bachelor, there are several:

• The word "hometown" will be dropped around 173 times per season.
• People will somehow say "Ben and I's relationship" almost as often.
• There will be increasing drama with each passing week, and Courtney Robertson and/or the people writing for Courtney Robertson will stir that ish up.

Monday was no exception as Courtney, Nicky Sterling, Kacie Boguskie and Lindzi Cox took Ben Flajnik to meet their parents in four awkward, contrived dates.

Court brought her aggressive game this week, just when we thought she couldn't make us any more uncomfortable. Could the other girls hold a candle to her?

Who made the final three? Were The Bachelor spoilers right, or did Ben pull a surprise? Hint: Someone's dad prompted a breakup many did not see coming.

Here's THG's official +/- Bachelor recap:

Lindzi Cox kicked things off at home in Ocala, Fla., where Ben became only the second guy she's ever brought home. This girl has been seriously lacking for screen time since the premiere considering how clearly cool she is. Plus 23.

They chatted about the first man she brought home who she said later broke her heart. Plus 5, not for breaking Lindz's heart, but because it's the right time in one's courtship to start bringing things up ... not on the first or second date.

Courtney Robertson isn't exactly known for subtlety. Or class. Or sanity.

Still, The Bachelor bad girl ups the ante even more than usual on next week's hometown date with Ben Flajnik, planning a "big surprise" for the hunk.

"I'm going to tell him I love him, and doing it in a very special way," Courtney Robertson teases in a sneak peek from Monday night's crucial episode.

"We're at this place where I've always wanted to get married and I've got a little wedding planned ... This is the best way I can think of to show Ben how I feel about him."

Courtney/The Bachelor producers really know how to pick 'em:

The Bachelor Sneak Peek: Courtney Robertson Hometown Date

Armed with two notepads, Court suggest they "could write some vows" for one another. "Do you have rings, too?" Ben Flajnik asks, likely only half-kidding.

"Maybe I do," Robertson teases. "Maybe I do." Girl is full-on crazy.

The Bachelor spoilers we've posted all season long have been accurate, so visit that page for a look at how (we think) the rest of the season plays out.

Then follow the jump for sneak peeks of Ben's hometown dates with the other three girls, Kacie Boguskie, Lindzi Cox and Nicki Sterling ...

Ben Flajnik may have gotten engaged on The Bachelor season finale, but it's already over, according to a new tabloid report. Read on for the alleged details.

If The Bachelor spoilers regarding the winner of this season are true, that's not entirely shocking. Follow the link to see who his fiancee reportedly is/was.

“They’ve totally cooled off,” a source tells Life & Style magazine. “They often go five to six days without talking. He doesn’t call her, he doesn’t text."

"She keeps saying, ‘What kind of a fiance is this?’”

Ben isn’t acting like he’s engaged, either. According to the report, in January, Ben flirted with a bunch of girls attending the Sundance Film Festival.

“I saw him give his number to a brunette at a party, and it definitely looked like they said, ‘See you later’ when she left,” a source says. “Ben was so flirty.”

On February 2, he told a girl she should never partake in a reality dating show. Never a positive sign, but then again, have you seen this season?!

Then, on February 4 in NYC, someone spotted Ben Flajnik flirting with a girl on the street ... and allegedly quasi-spilled the beans about his relationship.

Ben Flajnik goes on his hometown dates next week on The Bachelor. Kacie Boguskie, Nicki Sterling, Lindzi Cox and black widow Courtney Robertson have won the chance to bring a smiling Ben back to their hometowns. For hometown dates!

The show uses that word almost as much as the inaccurate "Ben and I's relationship." Why? We have no idea, but that's what they're called, all the time, and Flajnik is going to be put through the ringer by the ladies' respective parents.

Whose folks have reservations? Whose are most receptive? Who will advance to the final three? Watch the promo (around the 7:00 mark) in the clip below:

The Bachelor Hometown Dates Promo

In a new blog post, Ben Flajnik details how his feelings for Courtney Robertson are strong, despite things the other women on The Bachelor have said about her.

Try as they might, as we saw on last night's episode, Courtney's rivals have failed in their efforts to paint Courtney in a negative light. At least in Ben's eyes.

Flajnik writes in his weekly People blog that while The Bachelor "may not have been the best environment" for Robertson (ya think?), their connection is for real.

Ugh.

Of Courtney Robertson, Ben writes, "Here I was, amongst the clouds, with such an amazing woman. I'd never felt so close to my father and to my happiness."

"To share this moment with Courtney was an exciting experience, and I knew if we moved forward that we would always be able to share this moment."

"That evening, however, things got a little strange. It's a tough thing, I understand, for the women to find a fine line between getting along with the other women and realizing it's difficult to be friends with people dating the people you are dating."

"I've been there, and it's tough. I know it's been hard for Courtney, and to be honest, I'm not sure this was the best environment for her. But, just as I tell the women to take our relationships individually, I try to do the same."

"My feelings for Courtney are strong and I don't want to let external forces get in the way.  As the rose ceremony approached, I had a lot going through my head."

This season of The Bachelor has been the season of Courtney Robertson, and last night was no exception as the remaining women clamored to stop the Black Widow.

Ben Flajnik admitted that he's looking someone "a little bit weird," but we're not sure Courtney qualifies. Ashley Hebert is a little bit weird, in the best possible way.

Courtney? Mmmyeah not so much, unless ABC is doing the mother of all editing jobs to sabotage her ALL SEASON. She's so unpopular, she's all people talk about!

She's skinny-dipped and modeled and pursed her lips into Ben's heart, though, and with hometown dates looming, the women formed a united front to stop her.

Did they? Who made the final four? Were The Bachelor spoilers right all along, or did Ben pull a surprise and oust Court? Here's THG's official +/- Bachelor recap:

You know things are bad when Kacie B., probably the sweetest thing ever, is calling you out. Or when the story editors are feeding her lines. Minus 9.

“It took every freakin’ fiber of my being to not spring across the room and punch her in the face,” she said. Yikes, girl, take it down a notch. Minus 11.

Still, we feel ya. Plus 20.

Courtney did show a bit of vulnerability when she questioned if things were going well enough for her to want to introduce Ben to her family. Plus 7.

"Snap, girls. Show's over, you can pack your bags... kill shot!" - Courtney, after her temple-climbing one-on-one date with Ben in Belize. Minus 29.

"I don't want to get cocky though," she added. No, of course not. Minus 11.

Bachelor bad girl Courtney Robertson has become the star of the show this season, so it's no surprise she's been given the auto-tune treatment on YouTube.

In an instant viral video classic, some of the 28-year-old's most obnoxious quotes from the ABC reality show have been mashed together in music video form.

Whether she's name-checking her occupation ("modeling!"), bragging ("I got the rose!") or skanking it up ("Let's go bikini-less!"), she never ceases to amaze.

Or shut her month. Courtney Robertson has even more catchphrases than she does roses at this point. "Winning!" "I'm a move-maker! and "Snap, girls!" Et cetera.

Watch the hilarious video (and cringe that Ben keeps her around) below:

Courtney Robertson Auto-Tuned

Will Courtney get the boot on tonight's new episode, or will her quest to woo Ben Flajnik / get famous carry on? Follow this link for The Bachelor spoilers.

It turns out that before she met Ben Flajnik, The Bachelor bad girl and alleged maneater Courtney Robertson dated more than one Hollywood hunk.

Who are we talking out? These peeps, to name a few:

• Entourage cast member Adrian Grenier
  
• Desperate Housewives' Jesse Metcalfe (below)
• Reese Witherspoon's now-husband, agent Jim Toth

Witherspoon apparently didn't even know about her man's long-ago dalliance with catty Courtney Robertson until returning from a trip to Europe this month.

Not that she cares in the least.

"It didn't faze Reese," a source says of the Oscar-winner, who has two kids and married a second time with the CAA agent, 41, nearly a year ago.

"There's no way Jim was close to serious about Courtney," the source scoffs of the model. "I mean, how do you go from that chick to Reese?"

Hmm. That is an indisputable point.

Courtney Robertson:

[Photo: WENN.com]

Courtney Robertson continues to stir up drama on The Bachelor and her controversial tactics have landed her on two different tabloid covers this week.

Probably her true goal all along. "Winning!"

Speculation is running rampant about how long Courtney lasts (The Bachelor spoilers we've posted offer more on that topic), but one thing is clear:

She is the star of the show this season, for better or worse.

In their new issues, Us Weekly and In Touch have tag-teamed Courtney Robertson (they're probably not the first ... winning!!!) with the following accusations:

• She was dating an old rich guy while on the show!
• There's a secret sex tape that could RUIN her!
• Her attraction to Ben Flajnik is a complete lie!
• She's even worse than you think!

Okay, at least one of those is BS. No way could she be worse than we - and many other Bachelor fans, based on the majority comments we've read on THG - think.

Yes, we realize it's a TV show and they edit to great the best narrative that gets people talking. But do you honestly believe none of this is Court's real personality?

Tell us: What's your take on Courtney Robertson?