Ex Parte ASTA - Page 4




              Appeal No. 2003-0017                                                                Page 4                
              Application No. 09/326,996                                                                                


                     In rejecting claims under 35 U.S.C. § 103, the examiner bears the initial burden                   
              of presenting a prima facie case of obviousness.  See In re Rijckaert, 9 F.3d 1531,                       
              1532, 28 USPQ2d 1955, 1956 (Fed. Cir. 1993).  A prima facie case of obviousness is                        
              established by presenting evidence that would have led one of ordinary skill in the art to                
              combine the relevant teachings of the references to arrive at the claimed invention.                      
              See In re Fine, 837 F.2d 1071, 1074, 5 USPQ2d 1596, 1598 (Fed. Cir. 1988) and In re                       
              Lintner, 458 F.2d 1013, 1016, 173 USPQ 560, 562 (CCPA 1972).                                              


              The claimed subject matter                                                                                
                     Claims 4, 7 and 13, the independent claims under appeal, read as follows:                          
                     4.     A golfing aid comprising:                                                                   
                            an elongated member having a first end and a second end, said first end                     
                     being provided with golf ball holding means, and said elongated member further                     
                     being provided with means for releasing a golf ball from said holding means and                    
                     means for retaining a divot repair tool; and                                                       
                            a divot repair tool held by said retaining means, said repair tool including                
                     an elongated shaft having opposite ends and a divot repair element at one of                       
                     said. ends of said shaft.                                                                          
                     7.     A golfing aid comprising:                                                                   
                            an elongated member having a first end and a second end, said first end                     
                     being provided with golf ball holding means, and said elongated member further                     
                     being provided with means for releasing a golf ball from said holding means, at                    
                     least one of said elongated member, said holding means and said releasing                          
                     means having a first golf ball marker holding portion for storing a golf ball marker,              
                     and at least one of said elongated member, said holding means and said                             
                     releasing means having a second golf ball marker holding portion for depositing                    
                     a golf ball marker on and retrieving a golf ball marker from the ground.                           








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