Matilda Rice and Dani Robinson were the final two left standing, beating out 19 other women for a place in The Bachelor final.
In an Instagram post, Rice said she was "blown away" by the support she'd had throughout her time on the show.
"I just want to thank my friends, family and the rest of New Zealand for your incredible kind words and support throughout this whole experience! I've been blown away by how amazing you have all been. Thank you," she wrote.
Last night's episode saw both women meet Green's family, with his mother asking some intimate questions of the pair, including whether they were in love with her son and if they wanted to have children.
Robinson failed the meet-the-mother test when she confessed she was in love with the Bachelor and would say yes should he propose, prompting Green's mother to look alarmed.
Both contestants were treated to a final date with the Bachelor before he made his decision, leading to one of the series' funniest moments, when a koala did a poo on Rice's bare midriff.
But as the show came to an end, Green chose Rice, saying: "It's always been you."
For many, it came as little surprise. Social media has been inundated in recent weeks with spoiler posts claiming Rice would be the eventual winner.
An online Herald poll revealed 57 per cent of participants expected Rice to win, while just 19 per cent backed Robinson. 24 per cent believed there would be a sudden plot twist, leaving neither girl in the running.
Rice hit headlines early in the competition when it was revealed she works for The Bachelor NZ broadcaster, MediaWorks, as a sales account executive.
At the time, the company said there was no conflict of interest as Rice works in a separate division and had never worked on The Bachelor account. The series is produced by an external company, Eyeworks New Zealand, which selected Rice for the competition without MediaWorks prior knowledge.
Rice became an early favourite as the first contestant to receive a rose from Green at the very first cocktail party.
The 24-year-old broke her wrist during filming when she was thrown from a horse on a group date, but decided to continue on in the hopes of winning the Bachelor's heart.
Official overnight ratings won't be available until later this morning but Tuesday night's penultimate episode drew the highest ratings to date, as 356,000 viewers tuned in to see who would make the final rose ceremony.
The series has also been an online hit, with users streaming more than 144,000 full episodes last week.
- nzherald.co.nz
