Why does my Honda push mower only run when it is starved of air?

My mower only runs when my hand is over the air inlet of the carburetor only allowing a very small amount of air through. It’s a Honda, model number - HRR2162SDA. I was also able to get it to run if I sprayed carburetor cleaner in through the air inlet. I only kept it running for about 15 seconds like just to prove that it would run. But I could keep it running for as long as I wanted with my hand over the air inlet. Does this make any sense to any one?