Phase 1 Drill Program Starts on High-grade Winston Project

CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE: WGC

WINNIPEG, Oct. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ - Winston Gold Mining Corp. ("Winston Gold" or the "Corporation") (CSE: WGC) (OTCQB: WGMC) is pleased to announce that it has commenced a Phase-1 drilling campaign on its wholly owned Winston gold project near Helena, Montana.

The Phase 1 program will consist of 15-to-20 holes (4,800 ft) using two drill rigs that will target potential high-grade mineralization in the historic past-producing Custer Vein as well as along the Edna Vein Trend.

The Winston Gold Project is central to a historic precious and base metal mining district in which most of the ore was mined from tightly structurally controlled high angle fissure veins and lode/replacement zones. Reports indicate that more than 100,000 ounces of gold was recovered from these underground mines in the late 19th to early 20th century from about 150,000 tons of ore. (Earle, 1964; Schell, 1963).

The Custer Mine was developed for 2,400 ft along the Custer vein which averages about 4 ft wide. It was mined sporadically between 1930 and 1955. The average gold price over its production life was just US$34.47 per ounce. Very little un-oxidized, sulphide rich, ore was mined beneath the water table at 4,180 ft elevation (or the 400 ft level). Dewatering was expensive and not cost effective at that time.  The Winston property was historically drill tested for near surface bulk mining potential but the Custer vein was never drilled.

The first hole of the Phase 1 drill program is already turning and it is designed to test the sulphide zone of the Custer Vein below the 400 ft level. A total of 2,300 ft of core will be pulled from the drills to test the Custer Vein.

The Edna Vein Trend represents a newly discovered zone where drilling in late 2014 intersected at least two south dipping low-angle veins. Refer to NI-43-101 report authored by Dr. Richard C. Capps, Ph.D. dated April 27^th 2015 on Sedar.com.

Winston Gold Corp previously confirmed a mineralized zone that was originally identified in historic core hole C171C. Winston's hole, W1409, assayed 0.44 ounces per ton (opt) over 1.8 feet and historic core hole C171C assayed 0.38 opt over a 9 foot composite sample. Eight Winston core holes also intersected significant gold intercepts with values up to 3.14 opt in an area that was later dubbed the Edna Trend. 

Some notable intersections from that earlier drill program include:

• Hole W1404 intersect 2.3 ft averaging 3.14 opt (109.5 g/t) gold
• Hole W1408 intersected 4 ft averaging 0.336 opt (11.7 g/t) gold
• Hole W1410 intersect 7 ft averaging 0.193 opt (6.7 g/t) gold

In the current program, the first four holes into the Edna Trend will provide data for planning the most effective route the future Hyantha decline will take from the end of the Historic Upper Hyantha adit. Winston plans to widen the adit to 10-by-10 ft to allow access for modern mining equipment. A new decline will then be developed in waste rock to access the Edna Trend Vein system.

"The initial results from the drilling along the Edna trend will tell me where the best place is to begin drifting and where the decline needs to end up," commented Harold (Mike) Gunsinger, Director of Operations for Winston Gold.

The remaining holes will be designed to extend the Edna vein system along strike. A total of 2,500 ft. of drilling have been budgeted for this target.

Qualified Person
The technical results contained in this press release have been reviewed and approved by Dr. Criss Capps PhD. P.Geol., and independent consultant to Winston Gold Corp. Dr. Capps is a Qualified Person as defined in National Instrument 43-101.

About Winston Gold

Winston Gold is a junior mining company focused on advancing high-grade, low cost mining opportunities into production. Towards that end, the Corporation has acquired two under-explored and under-exploited gold/silver mining opportunities, being the Winston Gold project near Helena, Montana, and the Gold Ridge project, near Willcox, Arizona.

The CSE has neither approved nor disapproved the information contained herein.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.

Forward-Looking Information
This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that Winston Gold Mining Corp. (the "Company") expects to occur, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include regulatory actions, market prices, exploitation and exploration successes, and continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.

SOURCE Winston Gold Mining Corp.