A spool braking mechanism for a dual bearing reel includes a spool braking unit, a setting knob, an adjustment knob, and a spool controlling unit. The spool controlling unit is arranged between a spool and a reel body, and is an electrically controllable unit that controls the spool. The setting knob is movably disposed on the reel unit and is selectively positioned in a plurality of first operating positions. The setting knob is movably disposed on the reel unit and is selectively positioned in a plurality of second operating positions. The spool braking unit electrically controls the spool braking unit according to the first and second operating positions.