Gold Standard to Spend $8 Million on Nevada Exploration in 2011 Drilling to Begin in May to Follow Up 2010 North Bullion Zone Gold Discovery

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - April 5, 2011) - Gold Standard Ventures Corp. ("Gold Standard") (TSX VENTURE:GV)(OTCQX:GDVXF) www.goldstandardv.com announced today it plans to spend $8 million on exploration in 2011 using as many as four drills (three of them core) to advance the Company`s projects. The plan includes 20-25,000 meters of drilling in 40 to 45 holes with about 80% of the total directed to targets on the Company`s flagship Railroad project on the Carlin Gold Trend.

Highlights include:

• Primary target: $6.5 million to be spent at Railroad. The main objective is to follow up the North Bullion Fault zone discovery announced January 20, 2011. This drill target has the potential to blossom into a major, high-grade, Carlin-style deposit. Promising drill targets have also been located in the Railroad Fault zone and the historic Bullion Mining district. Exciting new targets have also emerged in the data acquired from recent detailed gravity and soil sample programs. Similar targets generated by the same methods have resulted in major discoveries elsewhere in Nevada.
• Secondary targets: An initial 4 to 6 holes are planned for a bonanza vein gold-silver target and a shallow, bulk disseminated gold zone at East Camp Douglas located near Mina, Nevada; 2 to 4 holes are planned for the early-stage Safford silver project, southwest of Carlin, Nevada; and 2 to 3 holes are planned to provide a preliminary test of a Rain district-like target south of Railroad.

In late 2010, three core holes completed on the North Bullion fault zone at Railroad discovered broad intercepts of gold mineralization grading above 1.0 gram of gold per tonne (gpt) in a geological setting identical with many Carlin-style high-grade gold deposits. These were the three northern most holes completed in the program and their results clearly indicated a north trend to mineralization. This discovery had three especially favorable features: evidence of silicified collapse breccias in limestone and capped by shale (a signature of many Carlin deposits); at reasonable depths of 200 to 400 meters (many Nevada targets being explored today are far deeper); and well within the Railroad property boundary (providing more than enough room for a sizeable deposit). After this discovery, the drill program was shut down for the winter.

Dave Mathewson, Gold Standard's Vice President of Exploration, said that the immediate objective of this year's program is to establish the lateral extent of the breccias and find their feeder structures which are generally much higher grade. "We have a strong, mineralizing fault in permissive rocks with impermeable shale to pond the gold-bearing fluids. An example of the kind of deposit we are looking for in this setting is Barrick's Meikle deposit, located about 35 miles to the northwest, which reported 6.5 million ounces of proven and probable reserves in 1995." (8.5 million tonnes grading 24.5 gpt) An initial 12 drill holes totaling about 7000 meters are planned for the North Bullion target which will be expanded with success.

The Company is also pleased to announce that during the 1^st Quarter of 2011, 2,198,184 warrants have been exercised, for a total of $2,096,502.30. The funds received from this warrant exercise will enable the Company to continue to aggressively proceed with its exploration drill program at Railroad, while maintaining a solid balance sheet with minimal additional share dilution. The Company currently has approximately $16,000,000 in treasury.

The Company also announces that, pursuant to its stock option incentive plan, it has granted certain employees, directors and advisors incentive stock options to purchase 350,000 common shares of the company at an exercise price of today's closing price for a period of 5 years.

The stock options are subject to the terms of the Company's stock option plan and regulatory approval.

ABOUT GOLD STANDARD VENTURES – Gold Standard Ventures is focused on the acquisition and exploration of gold projects in North Central Nevada. Gold Standard currently holds a portfolio of projects totaling approximately 26,000 acres of prospective ground within North Central Nevada of which 15,349 acres comprise the flagship Railroad Gold Project.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of Gold Standard,

Jonathan Awde, President and Director

This news release contains forward-looking statements, which relate to future events or future performance and reflect management's current expectations and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements reflect management's current beliefs and are based on assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company. Investors are cautioned that these forward looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause future results to differ materially from those expected. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and, except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances.