 The penalty stroke assessed is not the stroke made on the new ball; it is counted in addition to any and all swings made at the ball.For instance, hitting a ball into a water hazard, dropping a new ball at the position from which you hit the last one, then hitting the new ball counts as three strokes, not two.However, under certain circumstances during informal games, especially involving novice players, the penalty stroke is not counted; the player simply drops a ball at the spot of the last hit and plays again.