A fishing reel has a spool with a spindle and the spindle has a retaining portion to be engaged and disengaged with a slot of a gear rod. The gear rod is provided with two cut faces. While the spool is rotating in high speed, the retaining portion is attached on the cut faces first, and then the retaining portion is totally engaged with the slot after the spool rotates continuously to a predetermined angle. As a result, the spool can be stopped successfully while the spool is rotating in high speed and no damage is occurred between the spindle and the gear rod.