I played with my buddy today and on the 18th there was water directly in front of the tee box. He flubbed his tee shot in the water. He hit a second tee shot and it too went in the water. He then hit a third from the tees that flew the water into the fairway. So, when scoring, did he take a penalty stroke for the water, and hit 3 from the tee box, take another penalty, and hit 5 onto the fairway? Rule 27 says something about a second provisional holds the same relation to the first provisional to the original ball, but I don't think I understand the rule. Thanks.

Perhaps someone more familiar with the "official" ruling could clarify, but if it's a marked hazard, re-teeing is not an option. In a casual round, then his 3rd tee shot would have counted as his 5th stroke so he would be hitting 6 from over the water. Normally I would drop and be hitting 3 from just in front of the water but out of the tee box. Unless there is nowhere to drop but the tee box, then I'm not sure what to do. I've played courses where they didn't want people to hit off the tee box without a tee.

Re-teeing is quite ok. Ball in waterhazard (not lateral) provides 3 options: #1: play it as it lies, #2: back in a straight line and #3: go back to where you hit the original from. If that is on the teebox, you may re-tee since you bring a new ball in play on the teebox. Note: teeing up on the teebox is optional, if you wish you always can hit it from the grass. Any course management that does not allow that does not provide a golfcourse but something that just bears a slight resemblance to one.

In case of a lateral water hazard (red stakes) you also may drop within 2 clublengths from the point where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard, not nearer to the hole (or on the opposite side of the water hazard, again within 2 clublengths, not nearer to the hole).

However, back to the original question. Rule 27-2 does not apply, these second and third shots are not provisionals* thus yes, his shot that landed on the fairway makes 5 (teeshot = 1, water penalty = 2, second teeshot = 3, water penalty = 4, third teeshot = 5).

A ball can only be a privisonal when the original may be out of bounds or lost. A ball in the water isn't lost. See definitions of provisional ball and lost ball in the rulebook.

But even then... if there had not been a water hazard and both the first ball and the first provisional could not be found (thus both where lost), the second provisional would be for 5.

Provisionals are for when you do not know the exact result of your shot (ie. not sure you can find it or it is possibly OB)

rules also state that you cannot hit a provisional for a ball that you believe went into a hazard... thus you cannot hit a provisional for any ball that you know went into a hazard...

Your buddy was laying 5 in the fairway.