A bait cast fishing reel includes a frame, a spool rotatably coupled to the frame, at least one magnet having a magnetic field coupled to a first one of the frame and spool, at least one electroconductive coil coupled to a second one of the frame and the spool within the magnetic field, an electrical energy storage device electrically coupled to the at least one electroconductive member to store electrical energy generated during rotation of the at least one magnet and the at least one electroconductive member relative to one another during rotation of the spool, a sensor configured to generate spool rotation signals representing rotation of the spool over time, a controller coupled to the sensor and configured to generate a control signal based upon the spool rotation signal, and a braking mechanism coupled to the controller and to the electrical energy storage device. The braking mechanism utilizes electrical energy from the electrical energy storage device to control braking of the spool in response to the control signal from the controller. In one exemplary embodiment, the braking mechanism utilizes electrical energy from the electrical energy storage device to create a magnetic field opposing rotation of the spool. In another exemplary embodiment, the braking mechanism comprises a first surface coupled to the spool, a second surface coupled to the frame and an actuator configured to move the first and second surfaces into frictional engagement with one another. In yet another exemplary embodiment, the controller includes a memory storage device configured to store a spool rotation signal during a first cast, wherein the controller conducts a comparison of the spool rotation signals generated during a second cast with the stored spool rotation signals from the first cast and generates the braking signal based upon the comparison.