A close friend of mine who is my age just got his Z visa issued in Hong Kong. It seems this loop-hole is still open.

Another anecdote which surely cannot be true. Guangdong province was one of the first to stop the HK visa run loophole, perhaps because of an influx of those fleeing thailand who were ne'er do wells up to all kinds of deviance.

If you are not referring to Shenzhen, then which province, pray tell!?