In Mike Iocanelli's book Fishing On The Edge, he mentions using an overhand roll cast, as well as an underhand roll cast. 

 

What is an overhand roll cast?

It’s just the circular rotation of the wrist to load the rod and finishes with the back of your hand facing up when you release the spool.  In the under hand the motion is the opposite and the back of your hand is facing downward at the release point. I much prefer an underhand roll cast because the motion is more natural, it generates more force, and the lure is low and always in your sight as in pitching.  

most kayakers use an overhand roll cast because they are usually seated when casting and underhand is pretty tight because you are so low to the water.

Casting out in front of you with a little wrist movement instead of a big arm movement - handy when bank fishing tight stuff with trees and such all about.

You should always cast with wrist movement and minimal arm movement!

The under hand roll cast is normal wrist movement, I think the over hand cast is a side arm wrist cast.

Tom

On 9/12/2025 at 2:39 PM, WRB-2.0 said:

You should always cast with wrist movement and minimal arm movement!

👆This. I've found muskie fishing will teach you one of two things. Learn good mechanics, or learn to endure lots of pain.

On 9/9/2025 at 9:29 AM, bigbearstroop122 said:

most kayakers use an overhand roll cast because they are usually seated when casting and underhand is pretty tight because you are so low to the water.

I usually try to position myself to cast to targets on the cast is much easier for me from that direction. I'm right-handed. 

I still ain't figured out what an overhand roll cast is.

I pitched my bait caster for a year in my back yard and an overhand roll cast just came to me from repeating different ways to cast a bait caster.  Actually the easiest way to explain it is this;  with an old lure tied to line let it drop down about 2feet, engage release button hold your thumb on it of course and make a big circle holding everything but not casting. Then do the same thing but when the rod tip comes around to the bottom of the circle release and throw.  Once you get the hang of it your circle becomes small and you can throw with a flick of your wrist.

Practice, practice till you get it! Good luck and happy fishing.

17 hours ago, Bazoo said:

I still ain't figured out what an overhand roll cast is.

I get frustrated when I hear people say it too. A roll cast is used in fly fishing and people in bass fishing borrowed the term and ran with it, they aren’t rolling anything. Maybe the wrist but the cast doesn’t roll. I wouldn’t worry about it 

 

This is an actual roll cast. Because it unrolls 

 

https://youtu.be/LnrBUR_-iD0?si=aLg16gMmXfFDAcCa

A roll cast with a bait caster is not like the video you've put up.  He's not fly fishing and people in bass fishing didn't borrow it, you're confused yourself TnRiver what it is. Why would you be frustrated over a simple question? The guy fly fishing is using his whole arm to cast as most fly fishers do.  You need to look at someone making the cast using a bait caster not a fly rod! Just go fishing and use any cast you want it isn't rocket science but we all were trying to answer the question.

I know exactly what people refer to as a roll cast with baitcaster, I just think it’s the wrong thing to call it. They borrowed a fly fishing term for a sidearm cast where the wrist kind of rolls over, not the cast 

 

also you should never ever use your whole arm when fly casting, you could fly cast your whole life and never move your elbow away from your rib cage. When teaching clients we would even put a towel between their elbow and ribs and instruct them to cast without letting the towel fall, much like a golf instructor would 

8 hours ago, Bigassbass said:

I pitched my bait caster for a year in my back yard and an overhand roll cast just came to me from repeating different ways to cast a bait caster.  Actually the easiest way to explain it is this;  with an old lure tied to line let it drop down about 2feet, engage release button hold your thumb on it of course and make a big circle holding everything but not casting. Then do the same thing but when the rod tip comes around to the bottom of the circle release and throw.  Once you get the hang of it your circle becomes small and you can throw with a flick of your wrist.

Practice, practice till you get it! Good luck and happy fishing.

You describing the standard underhand roll cast!

Tom

There is only two types of casts…those that find water, and those that don’t.

 

 

 

if you scroll to about 3:56 into the video as he's going up the tiny creek, you can see JC make 4 different styles of cast on 5 casts.  A loose roll, a sidearm cast, and pitch, another sidearm, and then a real looping roll cast.  I don't know what Ike is talking about with an overhand roll cast.  I can only imagine that it is when you have the lure at the water level, tip of the rod kinda in front of you but still leading the bait back and kinda to the side of you, and in one motion you pull the lure out of the water backwards and low, roll it up and flick it over the top of the rod towards the target.  That's pretty useful if you're sitting down and close to the water.  It gets the lure out of the water and onto a cast in about 3/4 of a second.  I can't be sure that's what he means.  What I can be sure of though are two things:

 

1- I would kill to have that creek in JC's video available to me around here

2- Just watch the ease and casualness of JC fishing all the little nooks going up that creek and tell me he hasn't done it a million times.  

@casts_by_fly That is a great little creek for sure.

 

I don't have any problems with the roll casts that he is making in that video. I practice them and use them all the time. I don't pitch as well, yet.