I've been to China twice in last 7 months and I was not asked for my ticket when applying for a visa. That said, China is a tightly controlled society (try converting your RMB back to $ at the airport without an exchange receipt!). The concept of a MR may cause you be subject to some addional scrutiny.

A Chinese visa can be obtained in person at the Chinese embassy in D.C. or one its consulates (N.Y., Chicago, Houston, S.F. and L.A.). No mail applications are accepted but there are many agencies (Google “chinese visa”) that will process it by mail for you. A single-entry visa is $50 with four-business-day turnaround. One-day (same-day if rec'd by 11:30 am) is available for $80 and Rush (2-3 days) is $70. Agency fees and shipping (FedEx, UPS or USPS) are additional.

http://www.china-embassy.org/eng/hzqz/zgqz/t84246.htm

This is the agent that I used. The service is outstanding, their price is among the best (plus their return FedEx charges are competitive, except for the Overnight option) and they offer online status tracking (very handy, trust me).